Pokemon Leafs On Fire
by RJ49er
Summary: Ron and Lindsay are two Pokemon trainers exploring the Kanto region. Living in a world that's just like a Pokemon game. It's not nearly as fun as it seems. But definitely funny to read.
1. Welcome to the World of Pokemon!

"Hello, there! Glad to meet you! Welcome to the world of Pokemon. My name is Oak. People affectionately refer to me as the Pokemon Professor. This world is inhabited far and wide by creatures called Pokemon. For some people, Pokemon are pets. Others use them for battling. As for myself-"

"Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! We've heard this lecture a hundred times already. It's getting old." A youthful teen wearing a red-and-white cap interrupts the old man in a lab coat's powerpoint presentation, leaning back in his chair. He looks over at a girl around the same age wearing a white hat. "Honestly, don't even know why we have to be here?"

"Don't you remember, butthead", the girl says as she flicks the boy's forehead. "If you hadn't decided to run off into the tall grass, we wouldn't be in this lecture to begin with."

"Yes, indeed. It's unsafe! Wild Pokemon live in tall grass! You need your own Pokemon for your protection", Oak said as he stares at the boy with a confused look on his face. "Are you a boy? Or a girl?"

"Umm... I'm clearly a boy. Want proof?" The boy was about to pull down his jean zipper when the girl smacked him on the head.

"Don't think any proof is needed", the girl said irritated. The boy took off his cap and rubs the back of his brown-head of hair.

"Errm, remind me again, what is your name?", Oak said scratching his graying hair.

"What do you have dementia or something? My name is-", the boy replied as the girl interrupted him.

"ASSFACE"

Oak gave a smile and nodded his head. "Are you sure that's your real name?"

"Absolutely". The girl smirked at the boy who was clearly pissed off.

"No, it's Ron!"

"ASSFACE, it is", Oak said with a full grin. Ron slumped back in his chair, pouting in anger.

"My name is Lindsay, by the way", Lindsay said cheerily as Ron passed a deadly glance at her.

"Good to hear. Now, Lindsay and ASSFACE, let me show you why I brought you here." Oak proceeded to shamble through his various desks, trying to find what he was looking for. Ron and Lindsay watched in complete disinterest. It took seven minutes until Oak finally found what he was searching for and proceeds to show it off to Ron and Lindsay. It was his balls. His three balls. His three Pokeballs. (Get your mind out the gutter)

"There are three Pokemon here. The Pokemon are held inside these Pokeballs. When I was young, I was a serious Pokemon Trainer."

"Yeah, millions of years ago, when everything was black and white and you needed a cable to trade", Ron jokingly said.

"But now, in my old age, I have only these three left."

"You seriously only have three of these", Lindsay said in disbelief.

"Well, I did find this yellow rat chewing on the power outlets in my lab. Not sure if you guys would be interested in him", Oak said.

"Naw, he sounds overused", Ron replied.

"Here are your options." Oak proceeds to open up each of the three Pokeballs, revealing the three Pokemon.

One of them was a little green dinosaur with a bulb on his back. Another was a little orange lizard with a flame on his tail. The last one was a little blue turtle. Upon seeing the three Pokemon, Lindsay immediately shot out of her chair, put her hands on her cheeks, and intensely squeed.

"Awww, these pokemons are so cute. I just want to pinch their itty-bitty cheeks", Lindsay said as she proceeded to pinch the green and blue pokemons' cheeks at the same time. She, then, pinched the orange pokemon's cheeks with both of her hands. The orange pokemon spewed fire in her face. Her face was a charred mess. "Okay, not picking that one."

Ron was laughing his ass off.

"Oh my god, that was amazing! I'm definitely picking that one!" Ron stood up from his chair and pointed at the orange lizard.

"So, ASSFACE, you're claiming the Fire Pokemon Charmander?"

"My name is Ron, old man, and yes, I am totally picking Charmander."

Suddenly, a spunky kid burst through the doors of Professor Oak's laboratory angrily marching towards Professor Oak.

"Gramps! I'm fed up with waiting! I want a Pokemon now!", complained the spiky-haired kid as Ron and Lindsay looked back at him. Lindsay was facepalming while Ron gritted his teeth and clenched his fists.

"Dammit, not this kid again", Lindsay said in annoyance.

"This is my grandson!", Oak said eagerly before looking confused, "Erm, what is your name again?"

"Come on, Gramps. It's me, Gary", the brat said in a concerned tone.

"Right! So your name is Gary! This is my grandson." Oak had a big goofy smile on his face.

Ron walked over to Gary, puffed up his chest, and tried to give himself a manly look on his face. He only managed to look like he needed to take a dump.

"Oh, I know about him alright. We've been rivals since we were babies", Ron said as he started to recollect early memories of Gary bullying him as a baby. Stealing his milk bottle. Knocking over his blocks. Spitting baby food on Ron's cute baby face. Truly traumatic.

Gary looks and sees Ron's new Charmander, "Ah, I see you already got _your_ Pokemon. Looks stupid."

The Charmander gritted his teeth and clenched his fists in response. Gary, then, looked over and saw the blue turtle standing next to the Charmander.

"I'll take this one, then!", Gary said as he picked up the adorable turtle.

"So, you've decided on the Water Pokémon Squirtle?"

"Yes, Gramps, I have. My Pokemon looks a lot tougher than yours", Gary said as Squirtle proceeded to show off the cutest face imaginable.

Lindsay squeed at the result. Then, looked over the green dinosaur who felt sad cause he wasn't picked by the other trainers. Lindsay saw the Pokemon's loneliness and decided to pick him up in her arms.

"I'm guessing you're my Pokemon now", Lindsay said with a smile.

"So, you want to go with the Grass-"

"Yes, I do", Lindsay said in an irritated tone as she interrupted Oak's droning.

"Well, Gramps, I got to go start my Pokemon journey. I'm not going to be a Pokemon master standing next to these losers." Gary said as he is about to walk out of Oak's laboratory when Ron screams at Gary to get his attention. Gary turns his head back and sees Ron shaking in rage.

"Not yet, Gary. Do you really want to leave now without having a Pokemon battle first?", Ron asserted.

"Well, ASSFACE-"

"That's not my name!"

"If it's a battle you want, it's a battle you're gonna get", Gary said as he sent out his starter from his pokeball, " **Go! SQUIRTLE!** "

" **Go! CHARMANDER!** "

Lindsay walked over to Ronald's side with a cautious look on her face. "Are you sure you rush into battling so soon? You've never done a Pokemon battle before."

"You've never had a Pokémon battle before, have you? A Pokémon battle is-"

"Can it, Professor? I know what a Pokemon battle is. I've seen them on TV all the time. By the way, did you see that Gengar vs. Nidorino fight last night? It was sick. Besides, what's the worst that can happen?"

" **SQUIRTLE, use BUBBLE!** " Gary's Squirtle released a little bubble from its mouth that slowly floated towards Ron's Charmander. When the bubble hit Charmander's face, Charmander instantly fainted and fell to the floor. **It's super effective! CHARMANDER fainted!** After Charmander fainted, Ron was instantly knocked out and fell to the floor. **RON whited out!**

When Ron wake up, he could faintly see Lindsay's face staring at him in annoyance.

"Am I dead?"

"No, Ron, you just passed out after Gary kicked your ass in that Pokemon battle."

Ron looks around and sees that he is in his mother's living room, laying on the couch that she uses as her bed. He also saw his mother bringing a bowl of soup to the table in front of the couch.

"You really should be more careful next time. Pokemon battling can be very dangerous, especially in that tall grass." Ron's mother shivered at the thought. "Who knows what kinds of horrifying creatures lurk outside this town? Are you sure, ASSFACE, you want to leave town so soon? It's much safer here in Pallet Town."

"Seriously, Mom, you're doing this too. My name is Ron."

"Okay, ASSFACE", Ron's Mom said with an oblivious smile.

Ron muttered under his breathe while Lindsay was chuckling to herself. "Look, Mom, Pallet Town is a nice place but it's also dreadfully boring. There's nothing to do here. There's only three houses in this whole fricking town. And most of the people here just say the same shit over and over again. Mom, I want to go out and truly explore this Pokemon world! I want to be the very master of them all! I want to show the world I'm worth something!"

Ron proceeded to rise up in response to his own rousing speech, putting his left leg up on the table. "I WANT TO BE THE VERY BEST LIKE NO-ONE EVER WAS!"

Ron's mom gave a smile. "That's my ASSFACE. Always so dramatic. Fine, you've convinced me."

Ron sat back down on the couch. He, then, spent the next couple of minutes with Lindsay enjoying Ron's Mom's delicious Magikarp soup when Ron suddenly realized something.

"So what happened after I lost that battle?"

Lindsay scratched her white hat before recollecting. "Well, Gary spent a good 30 minutes laughing at your passed out body... AndthenhestolesomePokedollarsoffyourbody."

"WHAT?! He just stole money off of me while I was knocked out!"

"Well, that's what happens when you lose Pokemon battles. The winner takes a certain amount out of the loser's pockets. How else could we keep a stable economy?"

"You know I'm starting to think we're not living in a fully-functioning society."

"Oh, that reminds me. Professor Oak is looking for us."

"What does that old man want now?", Ron said in a pissed-off tone.

"I want you two to have something special before you begin your Pokemon journey", Oak said to Ron and Lindsay in his laboratory. "On my desk, there is my invention, the Pokedex! It automatically records data on Pokemon you've seen or caught."

Then, Professor Oak decided to give Ron and Lindsay his balls. His Ten Pokeballs.

"Here are some tools for catching Wild Pokemon", Oak said as he gave Ron and Lindsay five Pokeballs each. "You know it's been my dream to make a complete guide on all the Pokemon in the world!"

"Well, then, why don't you try filling out this Pokedex?", Lindsay questioned.

"Seriously, Lindsay, this man could get lost on a straight path. He wouldn't last a day in the wild."

"And two teens without basic survival training could?", Lindsay said further confused before Oak continued on like no-one was interrupting him.

"My grandson needs one of these Pokedexes as well. He just left my laboratory after he was done laughing at your unconscious body", Oak said as Ron angrily mumbled. "Man, that kid can be so forgetful... am I wearing pants?" Fortunately, Oak was.

In that very instant, Gary slammed through the doors and rushed into the laboratory.

"Gramps, just hand me that Pokedex and I'll be on my way. I just needed to borrow a Town Map from my sis!", Gary said before turning his head to Ron and Lindsay, "I told her not to lend you guys one! Don't bother coming around to my place after this! Smell you later!" Gary said as Oak gave him his Pokedex. Gary eventually left Oak's Laboratory laughing at Ron and Lindsay.

"Weird how he made such a big deal about that Town Map", Lindsay said bemusingly.

"That might be something to look into", Ron said curiously.

Ron and Lindsay decided to leave Oak's laboratory with their new equipment and brand new Pokemon.

"Bye, Professor Oak", Lindsay said while waving her hand.

"Yeah, thanks for the Pokemon, I guess", Ron said as he kept his hands down in his jean pockets.

"Bye, bye", Oak said as he watched the two leave his lab. "...Who the hell were those kids?"

It's every kid's dream to become a Pokemon trainer. To travel around the expansive regions of a world full of adventure and opportunity. Where the bonds of friendship will guide many through the toughest challenges for a worthwhile reward. To become a Pokemon master. And what Ron and Lindsay don't realize is that they are about to embark on a journey of fantastical proportions? Or at least a decently average amount of proportions? Give or take. Find out what happens in the next exciting installment.

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**


	2. Ron's First Catch!

**PREVIOUSLY ON "POKEMON LEAFS ON FIRE"...**

"How's my grandfather doing? Is he going to be okay?", Gary said concernedly.

Nurse Joy looked at her charts and had a very dour look on her face. "I'm sorry to say that Professor Oak's dementia is progressively getting worse. This could possibly lead to full-on Alzheimer's in the future. I'm not sure if the Pokemon Center can possibly heal this ailment." Gary Oak was trying to hold back his tears.

 **NOW, BACK TO THE SHOW!**

Last time, Ron and Lindsay left Professor Oak's laboratory, with their newly-obtained Pokemon, ready to start their Pokemon journey. However, before Ron and Lindsay left Pallet Town, the two had some unfinished business that needed resolving.

Lindsay stood by the lakeside, waiting for an old friend to come by. Then, she saw him walking towards the lake. He was an overweight man wearing a sleeveless blue shirt.

"Hey, Kevin. How's it been?"

Kevin didn't say anything. He stood and stared at Lindsay blankly.

"We have always been the closest of friends living in this small town."

"..."

"My mother is always taking trips to Johto, leaving me by myself a lot of the time. So I really did appreciate the company."

"..."

"I mean it was certainly difficult connecting to others here. I mean Gary's a giant tool. And Ron... he can be a bit difficult to work with but I can see there's some good in him. But none of them were as kind and caring as you were."

Kevin was clearly festering up the courage to speak out.

"Ron was an idiot for rushing into the tall grass but I have to say I'm glad he did. Because there is a big world outside of Pallet Town just waiting to be explored. I know that means I'm not going to be seeing you for a long time. But I honestly feel this is something I have to do."

Lindsay notices Kevin trying to speak.

"Kevin, is there something you want to say?"

Finally, Kevin shouted at the top of his lungs. "Technology is incredible! You can now store and recall items and POKEMON as data via PC!"

Lindsay joyfully laughed. "I forgot you were always so bad in conversations. Well, I guess this is goodbye."

Lindsay left the area as Kevin just stood there in silence.

"... Bye, Lindsay." A single tear rolls down the fat guy's cheek.

* * *

Ron decided to visit Gary Oak's place where Gary's mother offered him cookies. Ron declined and went upstairs to talk to Daisy, Gary's older sister.

"Hey, Daisy, I was just wondering if you could lend me a Town Map for my Pokemon journey", Ron said.

Daisy looked at Ron with a mischievously childish look and responded in an infantile voice. "I don't know. My brother would really not like that."

Ron felt really weird about Daisy's behavior but pressed on. He needed that Town Map. "Well, what your brother doesn't know won't hurt him."

Daisy decides to hand Ron the Town Map. "My brother told me not to lend you one."

"Well, it's cool to see you defying your brother's wishes", Ron said as he noticed Daisy's face shifting into a large grin.

"Speaking of defying my brother's wishes", Daisy says as she proceeds to lift up her skirt, "ASSFACE, would you mind exploring my Pokedex?"

Ron suddenly became very nervous. _Shit! What do I do? I wasn't prepared for this,_ Ron thought to himself. _I mean she looks 19 but knowing this world, she's most likely 10. I don't want an Officer Jenny on my ass._

While Ron was still arguing with his conscience, Daisy was noticing Ron's Thick Club increasing his Attack Stat. "Looks like I made your Bulba soar", she said seductively.

Ron proceeded to push Daisy into a corner, put his arm up against the wall, and kiss her on the lips. They then had sex. Ron has not even left Pallet Town yet and he's already using his pokeballs effectively on his first catch.

* * *

Ron and Lindsay eventually met back at the center of Pallet Town to get their Pokemon adventure started.

"So what have you been doing, Lindsay", Ron said curiously.

"Saying goodbye to an old friend", Lindsay said before looking at Ron who had ruffled up clothes and kiss marks all over his body. She then said in a repulsed tone, "What have you been doing?"

"Saying hello to a new friend", Ron said in a very smug voice.

Ron's Mom walked over to Ron and Lindsay, carrying two large backpacks in each of her heads. One of them was a large yellow two-strap backpack. The other one was another yellow backpack with one large strap that wraps the person's chest.

"These backpacks are filled with all the items you need for your Pokemon journey", Ron's Mom said.

"But we already have our Pokedex and Pokeballs", Ron asserted.

"Oh really, do you also have a sleeping bag, food supply, clean clothes, and most importantly, _clean underwear_ ", Ron's Mom rebutted as she handed Ron the two-strap backpack.

"No", Ron murmured as he put his head down in shame. Lindsay was chuckling to herself at Ron's embarrassment.

"I even packed similar items for you, Lindsay, since your mother is busy in Johto", Ron's Mom said as she handed Lindsay the one-strap backpack.

"Thanks, Ron's Mother. I really appreciate this kind gesture", Lindsay said giving a warm smile as she put on her backpack.

"That's a shame", Ron said as he got closer to Lindsay. "I thought we were going to have to share a sleeping bag." Ron gave a perverted smile at the thought.

Lindsay slapped Ron's face in response. "Yeah, it's a real shame, isn't it", she said sarcastically.

Ron's Mom was starting to tear up. "Well, I guess this is goodbye, son. All boys leave home someday. It said so on TV." Ron smiled and hugged his mother before walking off with Lindsay.

As they were walking out of Pallet Town, they waved good-bye to Ron's Mom before making their way to Route 1.

* * *

After _finally_ beginning their Pokemon journey, Ron and Lindsay spent a good couple of minutes walking through the tall grass before they even encountered a Pokemon. Ron was especially bored.

"Seriously, my mother told me that this place was full of deadly creatures that can sprout out and attack us. But so far, zilch."

Finally, a Pokemon encounter occurred and Ron was excited... until he saw what he was fighting against. It was a small purple rat with a large set of fangs.

"Seriously! These are the dangerous creatures that were preventing us from leaving Pallet Town! Mom had us worried for nothing."

" **Go Charmander** ", Ron said in the most uninterested voice imaginable. He sent out the Charmander who was fiercely determined to defeat that ugly rat.

" **Charmander, use Scratch** ", Ron said as Charmander walked over and scratched at the Ratata.

In response, Rattata started shaking its tail at Charmander. Both Charmander and Ron were bewildered by the action. **Wild Rattata used Tail Whip!**

While Ron was battling the rat, Lindsay looked on her Pokedex for new information about this Pokemon. "It says here that thing's a Rattata. They tend to live in packs. So if you see one, it is certain that 40 more live in the area."

"Well, that's great to hear", Ron said sarcastically. "Not even going to bother catching it. **Charmander, use Ember**."

Charmander unleashed a blast of fire from his mouth that instantly fried the purple rat making it black as ash. **The wild Rattata fainted!**

"Yeah, I'll admit that thing looked too ugly to be worth catching. Plus, it's stats are really shit too." Lindsay said after seeing the fainted Rattata on the ground.

"What the hell are stats?", Ron exclaimed.

"Stats basically determine how good you are at battling. There are different categories that do different things but I don't you're not going to listen to it, so I'll stop the drawn-out explanation", Lindsay said as Ron suddenly looked intrigued.

"'How good you are at battling', eh?", Ron said as he instantly took out his Pokedex to look at his Charmander's stats. "Wow, these are really low."

"We _just_ got these Pokemon, Ron. Of course, their stats are low right now. But if we keep battling, we'll get experience. More experience means higher stats. Higher stats means stronger pokemon. Stronger pokemon means-"

"Becoming a Pokemon Master!", Ron asserted.

"Pretty much", Lindsay said as she kept looking at the fainted Rattata. "You know I wonder what happens to the fainted Pokemon. Are they just left here to rot?"

Ron turned his head and instantly noticed something. He tabbed Lindsay to get her attention and then, she turned his head as well. They both saw that the entire path was full of fainted rats and birds.

"You think we would have noticed that at some point", Ron said surprised at their own obliviousness before returning to his normal attitude. "But hey, I guess that's the laws of nature in effect."

Lindsay was slightly disturbed by this revelation but shrugged along with Ron's idea. Trying not to think too much about the horrifying implications of their seemingly cheerful environment. As the two continued walking, Lindsay managed to encounter a different Pokemon. It was a small brown-and-pale colored bird with a pink peak and talons. Lindsay was instantly smitten by the creature.

"Oh my god! It's so cute. I'm going to catch it right now. **Go BULBASAUR!** "

Bulbasaur was released from its Pokeball with a warm smile on his face. Lindsay instantly hugged her Pokemon with a cheek-to-cheek grin in response. Ron felt nauseous at the very sight.

" **Bulbasaur, use Tackle!** "

Bulbasaur tackled the wild Pidgey. Meanwhile, a bored Ron was checking his Pokedex.

"Hmmm... Pidgey. Tiny Bird Pokemon. Likes to kick sand to blind opponents."

The Pidgey proceeded to kick sand in the Bulbasaur's face, blinding it. **Wild Pidgey used Sand-Attack!**

"Come on, Bulbasaur. **Use Tackle!** ", Lindsay said trying to motivate Bulbasaur who was trying to get the sand out of its eyes. However, Bulbasaur tried to tackle the Pidgey. He missed the Pidgey completely and ran straight into a tree. **Bulbasaur's attack missed!**

After Bulbasaur's crash, the wild bird went towards Bulbasaur and tackled him. **Wild Pidgey used Tackle!**

Lindsay was worried about her Bulbasaur and considered taking it back in its ball and running away. However, she saw her Bulbasaur slowly standing back up.

"You've got this, Bulbasaur. **Use Tackle one more time!** "

Bulbasaur ran forward and tackled the Pidgey, making the bird Pokemon very weak. Lindsay decided to throw a Pokeball at it. The Pidgey turned into a beam of red light as it got absorbed into the Pokeball. Lindsay and Ron watched in anticipation as the ball moved back and forth. Flashing beams of red light until finally, the flashing stopped. **PIDGEY was caught!**

"I did it! I caught a Pidgey!", Lindsay said incredibly excited as she held her newly-used Pokeball to the skies above. Bulbasaur smiled at Lindsay's happiness, despite being sore from the fight.

"Eh, it's alright. There are better bird pokemon out there", Ron said in an unimpressed tone. "Come on, let's get out of this stupid route."

* * *

Ron and Lindsay continued their journey. Battling all the Pidgeys and Rattatas that they saw on their route. Leaving a trail of fainted Pokemon behind them. Lindsay and Ron decided to use the Potions found in their backpacks on their battling Pokemon to make sure they were feeling alright. Eventually, the two trainers arrived at Viridian City.

"You know I hear this city has its own gym. Hopefully, we can battle the Gym Leader there and win us some badges", Ron said. "Remember if we have eight badges, we can make our way to the Indigo Plateau where we have the chance to battle the Elite Four. Defeating the Elite Four means we can possibly become the new Pokemon Champion of the Kanto Region."

"Yeah, Ron, I already knew that. Anyone that's gone to Pokemon School knows that", Lindsay argued.

"Well, I just wanted to make sure you knew since you are such a noob", Ron said while pointing a finger at Lindsay's face.

"Tell me. Of the two of us, which one has actually managed to _catch_ a Pokemon?"

Suddenly, an old balding man appeared right in front of Ron and Lindsay. They were both startled. He stared at Ron intently. "You don't know how to catch a Pokemon?"

"Yeah, I do. I just-"

"I suppose I better show you then!" Old Man dragged Ron by his shirt as Ron struggled to break free. Lindsay could barely contain her laughter at this incident and decided to follow them.

The Old Man took Ron to a bush where the kook spotted a brown worm with a giant needle on his head. The Old Man was shuffling through his bag to find his "pokeballs". It took him ten minutes to find what he was searching for. Ron and Lindsay stared at him the entire time in complete disinterest.

"Watch as I throw this Pokeball at the Weedle."

"That's not a Pokeball! That's just a rock that's painted red-and-white", Lindsay said incredibly confused.

The old man threw the "pokeball" at the Weedle. The "pokeball" whacked the Weedle very hard, making it very mad. The Weedle, then, proceeded to jump up and attack the old man.

"Ugh! This is not how this tutorial was supposed to work!", the old man screamed as he was fearfully trying to stop the Weedle from attacking him.

"Should we try and help him?", Lindsay said, slightly concerned.

"Nah, he's old. He doesn't have that much time anyway. At least now, he can have an honorable death", Ron said.

The old man tried climbing his way out of Weedle's intense beating while crying for his mommy. Lindsay stared at Ron disapprovingly.

"Fine", Ron relented as he threw a Pokeball at the Weedle. Ron instantly caught it. **WEEDLE was caught!** Ron looked down at the beaten-up old man, bending his knees to get a closer look at him before giving a smug smile. " _That's_ how you catch a Pokemon!"

Ron and Lindsay eventually arrived at the Viridian City Gym... only to discover a giant sign that says " **CLOSED!** " on the front of the gym. Ron appears exasperated at the discovery.

"The Gym is closed!", Ron shouted.

A random guy standing in front of the Viridian City Gym exclaimed, "This POKEMON GYM is always closed. I wonder who the LEADER is?"

"Then, why are you standing in front of this gym if you know it's closed?", Lindsay asked the stranger.

"This POKEMON GYM is always closed. I wonder who the LEADER is?"

Ron slapped his face in response to this stupefying situation. "I got sick of this shit in Pallet Town. Come on, Lindsay. Let's get out of this stupid city."

* * *

Ron and Lindsay went on a new path from Viridian City. Ron shoved his face deep in his Town Map. He was slightly confused at what he was looking at but didn't want to show it. Lindsay was noticing the cluelessness in Ron's face, however, and decided to question him.

"So what route are we talking right now?"

"Route 2. This path will lead us to Pewter City, another Gym city. Hopefully, that gym isn't closed."

Ron and Lindsay pass by a signpost that says **Route 22**. Only Lindsay noticed it, though, as Ron still had his face shoved into the map. "Are you sure you're reading that map right?"

"Absolutely. We just need to take this path towards-" Ron was interrupted when Lindsay decided to take the map from Ron's hand and turn it around. She, then, put the map back in Ron's hands. "...Oh. Yeah, that makes more sense."

Suddenly, Roy and Lindsay encountered a wild Pokemon. It was another Bird Pokemon but this time, it wasn't a Pidgey. It looked different with brown-feathery head and red feathers for the body. The bird also looked more fierce than a Pidgey.

"Cool! Now that's what I call a bird pokemon", Ron said as he smiled at this new bird Pokemon. " **Go! WEEDLE!** "

Ron released the prickly worm out of its Pokemon. It was still angry about that old man hitting him with that rock. So after being release, the Weedle instantly attacked Ron.

"Hey, I'm supposed to be your master. Obey me!", Ron said trying to fend off the angry Weedle. Lindsay sighed from Ron's incompetence while Spearow just stared in confusion.

Eventually, Spearow decided to walk over to the pissed-off Weedle and peck at its eyes. **Wild SPEAROW used Peck!** This made the Weedle decide to direct his anger at the Spearow instead of at Ron.

"Okay, Weedle, **use Poison Sting!** "

The Weedle shot a little poison thorn straight out from the top of his head. It hit the Spearow. **The wild SPEAROW became poisoned!** Suddenly, the wild Spearow became very sick and starting vomiting on the tall grass. **The wild SPEAROW is hurt by poison!**

Ron decided to switch out Weedle, since it only knows one useful move, for his Charmander. " **Charmander, use Scratch!** "

Charmander scratched the Spearow really hard. Ron could tell from the way that Spearow was moving that the Pokemon was weakened enough. So Ron took out a Pokeball from his backpack and threw it at the Spearow. Spearow was sucked into the Pokeball and Ron became increasingly excited as the Pokeball started flashing. Eventually, the Pokeball stopped flashing. **SPEAROW was caught!**

Ron smiled from cheek-to-cheek as he put his new Spearow in his backpack. This was the happiest Ron had felt on his Pokemon journey since... since... since he screwed Gary's sister.

"Look I'm glad to see you happy about your new Pokemon but we need to get back to Viridian City. Besides, we didn't get to visit the Pokemon Center or the PokeMart. Those places can be very useful", Lindsay said.

Ron returned a stubborn look at Lindsay. "I don't need to go to the Pokemon Center or the PokeMart. I have all the Potions I need in my backpack."

"If you say so", Lindsay said as she walked back to Viridian City, leaving Ron alone on Route 22.

Ron was about to follow Lindsay back to Viridian City when he had another Pokemon encounter. But this Pokemon was different from the rest. This wasn't a bird, rat, or bug. This was a strange white Monkey-like creature with a pig-like snout. When he noticed Ron, the pokemon instantly started pulling some punches in Ron's direction to intimidate him.

"Wow! What kind of Pokemon is that?", Ron said as he got out his Pokedex to check.

Ron read aloud the Pokedex entry for this angry looking Pokemon. "Mankey. Pig Monkey Pokemon. Extremely ill-tempered. Incredibly dangerous. Try avoiding this pokemon if you are a starting trainer." Ron gave a slight laugh in fear as the Mankey started charging towards him.

Ron instantly summoned his Spearow in response. However, Ron's Spearow looked just as weakened as when Ron caught him. "Why are you so weak right now, Spearow?"

Spearow gave a really loud series of squawks in response.

"Right, Right. Because I didn't go to the Pokemon Center to heal you", Ron said as he slapped his forehead in his own stupidity. "Well, at least, you're not poisoned, right?"

Spearow was spewing up chunks on Mankey's face. **Spearow is hurt by poison!**

This made the wild Mankey very angry, so he smacked the Spearow across the face. **Wild Mankey used Karate Chop! It's super effective!** Spearow crashed on the ground, passed out. **Spearow fainted!**

"Shit!", Ron said as he withdrew his Spearow and sent out Weedle to replace him. " **Weedle** , **Poison Sting!** "

Weedle shot out a poison thorn from the top of his head, trying to poison the Mankey. However, the Mankey dashed out of the way. **Weedle's attack missed!** Mankey proceeded to scratch Weedle's body repeatedly. **Wild Mankey used Fury Swipes!** Eventually, the Weedle passed out as well. **Weedle fainted!**

Ron started talking to the pokeball of his last remaining Pokemon. "You're my last Pokemon yet. Do me proud. **Go! Charmander!** "

Charmander was sent out. He clearly looked weaker than he started out, having done so many battles. Even with the Potions, Charmander was still not feeling too well. Mankey didn't wait for Ron to give his Charmander a command. He instantly went up to Charmander and kicked him square in the face. **Wild Mankey used Low Kick!** Ron closed his eyes, expecting the battle to be over. But then, he opened them to see that Charmander was still standing. The blow clearly did damage but Charmander was not giving up that easily.

"Yeah, Charmander, **use Scratch!** " Charmander used as much energy that he could muster up for this next attack. Charmander used his claws and struck across Mankey's left eye. The scratch was so powerful that Mankey was instantly bleeding from the wound. Mankey was taken aback by the sheer power of Charmander's simple attack. Ron was amazed at what he witnessed.

"Great work, Charmander", Ron said as he was rummaging through his backpack. "Let me just get you a Potion quickly before the Mankey strikes again." However, Ron realized something in his search that instantly took all the hope out of this situation. "I'm... I'm out of Potions!"

Charmander looked back at Ron's hopeless face and instantly became worried. Then, the lizard Pokemon turned back and saw the Mankey preparing for an attack. The wild Mankey was not going to go easy anymore. His opponent proved to be much more challenging than expected. He was still bleeding through the scratch on his left eye. The Mankey instantly ran towards the Charmander. Charmander flinched in fear as the Mankey grabbed his body. The Mankey, then, leaped up in the air and started spinning around. Each spin getting quicker and quicker. Eventually, the Mankey pulled Charmander below his body and let gravity do the rest. Both Mankey and Charmander came crashing into the ground. A giant hole surfaced where they landed. Ron fell over from the impact of the crash. **Mankey used Seismic Toss! It's not very effective!**

Ron stands back up as he sees a layer of dust surround the area of the crash. As he goes down the large impact area, Ron notices the wild Mankey running off into the tall grass. Then, Ron sees something in the very center of the large crater: his Charmander. Ron instantly rushed as quickly as possible towards his Pokemon. He eventually reached his Charmander and picked him up in his arms. He could see that the Charmander was still conscious but in an incredible state of pain. The Charmander released an animal cry at Ron.

"It's okay, Charmander." Ron was slightly tearing up at the sight of his injured Charmander. "You can rest." The Charmander gave a smile before seemingly going to sleep. **Charmander fainted!** Ron, then, fell down on the ground, knocked out unconscious. **RON is out of usable Pokemon! RON whited out!**

* * *

When Ron woke up, he felt slightly hazy and had gained a massive headache. But he knew that he needed to get back up and return to Viridian City. However, something seemed off about his current surroundings. He wasn't at a jungle-like area full of tall grass and wild Pokemon. This place seemed more familiar. Then, Ron realized his current location when he saw his mother come around the corner, carrying two plates of oatmeal on a large board.

"Oh hey, ASSFACE, didn't expect to see you back so soon?", Ron's Mom said with a smile.

"HOW THE HELL AM I BACK AT MY MOTHER'S HOUSE?!"

Meanwhile, Lindsay is still waiting in Viridian City, yawning in complete boredom.

Will Ron ever make it back to Viridian City? Will Lindsay still be waiting for him in the meantime? Will Gary stop being such a douchebag? Will we ever find the cure for cancer? All these questions and more will be answered in this next exciting installment. Except that last one, that probably won't be answered here.

The ferocious Mankey dashes through the tall grass until he finds a small lake. He cups his hands together to collect some water. He, then, splashed it over his bleeding face, washing away the blood from his wound. After cleaning his injury, the Mankey stared at his reflection in the water. Closing his left eye, he used his open eye to examine the details of the scratch. The scratch has left a permanent scar on Mankey's right eye. The Mankey's anger grows stronger and stronger as he keeps looking at himself in the lake. He knows what must be done and rushes back into the tall grass.

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**


	3. Viridian Forest Blues!

**PREVIOUSLY ON "POKEMON LEAFS ON FIRE"**

A young Mankey stands in front of his intimidating trainer, crying his eyes out. The large and muscular trainer leers at his sobbing Pokemon.

"I tried my hardest to train you but you have proven yourself too incompetent to be kept on my team. I need Pokemon who can handle harsh training and survive any battle conditions," the trainer said as the Mankey was clinging to his leg. The Mankey was trying his hardest to convince the large man to not abandon him.

"Pathetic!" The trainer said as he kicked his Mankey to the ground.

The trainer took Mankey's pokeball and put it on the ground. "You are now officially..." He, then, smashed it with his barefoot. "Released!"

Mankey laid on the floor, still sobbing intensely, as his trainer turned his back on him and walked away.

 **NOW, BACK TO THE SHOW!**

Last time, Ron was brought all the way back to Pallet Town (somehow?) after a vicious Mankey defeated him in battle. Not even his recently-captured Weedle and Spearow could defend themselves against this ferocious beast.

After getting over the shock of being back in Pallet Town, Ron tried questioning his mother about what had happened.

"Mom, do you know what's going on? How did I get here? I was on Route 22 last time I checked. But now, I'm back in Pallet Town!" Ron said in an alert tone.

"I don't know, ASSFACE. I was just making some oatmeal when all of a sudden, you just appeared in the living room," Mom said with a large clueless grin.

Ron realized that it was pointless trying to find answers, so he decided to get his bag and instantly left his mother's house. Meanwhile, Ron's Mom continued standing there with the tray full of bowls of oatmeal.

"Well, more oatmeal for me." There was nothing that could dampen the eternal cheeriness of Ron's Mom.

Now more persistent than ever to get back to Viridian City, Ron left his hometown... Well, he decided to visit Gary's house to bang his sister again. The mother had really bad hearing and thus, couldn't hear the sick shit that was happening on the upper floor.

Anyway, Ron trekked through Route 1 again. Slaughtering all the Rattatas and Pidgeys he saw with his Charmander, Weedle, and Spearow. However, something interesting happened right before he reached Viridian City. Ron noticed that, after Weedle poisoned and fainted the 127th Rattata they've encountered, Weedle was starting to glow.

"Hey, Weedle, what's happening to you?" Ron was intrigued by what he saw.

Suddenly, Weedle was changing form. Instead of being a hairy worm, Weedle started to look like a yellow cocoon. After his Pokemon stopped glowing, Ron knew that his Weedle wasn't a Weedle anymore. **Congratulations! Your WEEDLE evolved into KAKUNA!**

"Weedle, did you just evolve?" Kakuna was silent and stood completely still. "Amazing."

While Ron found his second walk through Route 1 to be tedious, he was content knowing that his Pokemon got stronger from the process.

* * *

Finally arriving at Viridian City, Ron searched the area for his female companion. The first stop he checked was the Pokemon Center. Ron thought it would be quite resourceful to possibly get information about Lindsay's location while getting his Pokemon healed. Ron walked over to the front desk where a smiling nurse with pink hooped hair resided.

"Welcome to the Viridian City Pokemon Center! My name is Nurse Joy. How may I help you?"

"Well, I'm looking for this chick. Teenager. Long brown hair. White hat. Blue shirt. Red skirt. Constantly looks pissed. Ring any bells? ...Also, I need my Pokemon healed." Ron put the three Pokeballs containing his pokemon on the counter.

"Oh well, I did see this young girl come over here to heal her pokemon. She said she was going on a Pokemon adventure with some asshole in a red hat," Nurse Joy said with a cheery smile. It reminded Ron of his mother.

"I see," Ron atonally said as he scrunched up his face, clearly offended.

"Okay, I'll take your Pokemon for a few seconds." Nurse Joy grabbed Ron's balls and took them to a backroom to get healed. Ron could faintly hear a catchy jingle playing as his Pokemon were getting healed. After a few minutes, Nurse Joy came back with a tray full of Ron's fully-healed Pokeballs. "Thank you for waiting. I've restored your Pokemon to full health. Good luck in finding your friend. I'm sorry I couldn't assist you further."

"Yeah, whatever," Ron said in stone-faced boredom. He grabbed his healed pokemon and left the Pokemon Center.

His next stop was the PokeMart where he decided to restock on Potions. He talked to the young man at the cash register about where Lindsay could be while buying a couple of Potions. He also proved to be useless in aiding Ron's search.

Finally, he saw a familiar face... the old man who got beat up by a Weedle. He currently sat on a bench covered in bandages along with a cast on his right arm.

"Oh hey, old man. How's it going?"

The old man bitterly stared at Ron. "What? Do you want to see me almost get killed by a _Caterpie_ next?"

"As entertaining as that would be, I'm just wondering if you knew where my friend is."

"You mean the girl with the white hat and the short shirt and the nice ti-" The old man gave a perverted grin as he was reminded of Lindsay.

"Yeah, her," Ron interrupted, disgusted by the old man's perverted nature.

"Oh well, I saw her waiting in the middle of the city for a couple of minutes. She looked really bored and seemed to walk off in that direction to Viridian Forest," the old man explained as he pointed to Viridian City's northern exit.

"WHAT!?" Ron shouted. He stomped his feet in anger as he trudged his way through Route 2. He was so pissed that he didn't bother fighting any random encounters. There were just Pidgeys and Rattatas anyway.

* * *

Eventually, Ron arrived in Viridian Forest. A large lavish forest area full of tall grass and young kids with straw hats. Ron continued his angry walk from there.

"How dare Lindsay just abandon me like that? I swear the next time I see her I'm going to-" Ron stopped when he noticed something peculiar. It was a white hat. It was Lindsay's white hat.

 _What's Lindsay's hat doing on the ground?_ , Ron thought. He was concerned... until he looked up. Ron saw a large figure wrapped in a white stringy substance dangling upside down from a large tree branch. Looked like a large cocoon. It took Ron a couple of seconds to realize that large figure was Lindsay. Upon this discovery, Ron immediately burst out laughing.

Lindsay's mouth was covered by the white substance but she managed to get her mouth loose. "Hey, don't just stand there. Get me down!"

Ron was still laughing. "I'm sorry. I'm just happy to see _you_ in a crappy situation for once."

"Yeah. Ha-Ha! You've had your fun. Now, get me down already. I've been up here for hours and I really need to pee." Lindsay was visibly squirming in her cocoon.

"Fine. **Go, Charmander!** " Ron relented, releasing the fire lizard from his Pokeball. " **Use Ember** on that cocoon!" Ron pointed at Lindsay's cocoon whereupon Charmander released a stream of fire in that direction. Lindsay screamed as the fire consumed her. Eventually, the fire teared up the cocoon layers, making Lindsay drop to the ground with a painful thud. Lindsay was in a lot of pain, struggling to get up from the ground. She, eventually, managed to stand up straight, appearing completely scorched from Charmander's attack.

"No need to think me. It's no big deal," Ron smugly said as he looked back at Lindsay. She was pissed. _Really pissed._ Lindsay gave Ron a good whack on the head, leaving a large bump.

"Hey, what was that for?" Ron whined as he rubbed the top of his head.

"You know there were plenty of ways you could have gotten me down-" Lindsay said before suddenly shouting. "WITHOUT BURNING ME!"

"How the hell did you manage to get stuck in that damn cocoon anyway?"

"Well..." Lindsay appeared slightly embarrassed as she began recounting what had happened.

* * *

 **A FEW HOURS AGO...**

Lindsay was taking in the luscious scenery that the Viridian Forest had to offer. Much more lively and adventurous than anything that Pallet Town had to offer. A young kid wearing a straw hat walked over to Lindsay, gripping a large butterfly net in his hands.

"Hey! You have Pokemon! Come on! Let's battle 'em!" The young Bug Catcher shouted in Lindsay's face. Lindsay was caught off-guard by the kid's abrasiveness.

"Kid, don't you think you're being a bit too forward with this whole battling thing? We've just met," Lindsay said but the Bug Catcher wasn't listening.

" **Go Caterpie!** " The Bug Catcher released a green-and-yellow caterpillar pokemon from his pokeball.

"That's a cute Pokemon you got there," Lindsay said while smiling at the Caterpie's adorableness. "Well, I guess we're battling. **Go Bulbasaur!** "

Lindsay's Bulbasaur and Pidgey were able to decimate the Bug Catcher's team. His Caterpie was rather weak compared to Lindsay's pokemon. His only other Pokemon was a Weedle that was equally weak.

"No! I can't believe I lost," the Bug Catcher said in disappointment, puffing his cheeks.

"Maybe sticking to just Bug Pokemon isn't the best strategy," Lindsay said as the Bug Catcher gave her some Pokedollars.

After defeating that scrub, Lindsay walked through the forest until she encountered a familiar Pokemon. It was a wild Caterpie. Lindsay was instantly smitten by the bug pokemon's adorable appearance. She walked over to the green bug and started pinching its cheeks.

"Oh, aren't you an adorable little thing." Lindsay couldn't contain her delight but was starting to notice that the Caterpie was looking angry. Caterpie violently shook itself away from Lindsay's grip. Once the bug was released, it emitted a loud bug cry. Suddenly, a whole swarm of Caterpie came from all over the forest to surround an overwhelmed Lindsay. Lindsay was instantly worried.

"Hey, hey, wait a minute. I didn't mean to harm your friend. I just thought he was cute. That's all!" Lindsay's attempts to make peace with the Caterpie proved unsuccessful. All the Caterpies stood up straight and proceeded to shoot a white stringy substance out of their mouths. The shots of string wrapped around Lindsay's body, trapping her in minutes. Then, some butterfly pokemon with purple bodies and large white wings appeared. They also shot a string substance from their mouth to the bottom of Lindsay's cocoon cell. These Butterfrees lifted Lindsay's cocoon in the air and stuck the string to a large branch. Lindsay was left hanging on that tree branch. The Butterfree were about to leave her there but Lindsay was not going to have that.

"Stop right there! Don't leave me like this! I'm sorry I hurt your friend! But please, JUST LET ME D-!" A Butterfree flew to Lindsay's upside-down face and string shotted her mouth shut. Eventually, all the bug pokemon left while Lindsay was left hanging on that tree branch.

* * *

After hearing Lindsay's story, Ron once again burst out laughing. Lindsay puffed her cheeks in anger. Eventually, Ron's laughter died down. "That was too rich! I wonder what happened to that Caterpie you pissed off."

Lindsay was suddenly shot in the face with a sticky white substance. **Wild Caterpie used String Shot!** Lindsay wiped the white stuff off her face and looked over to see a lone Caterpie staring angrily at her.

"You!" Lindsay said as she released her Pidgey out to battle it. "I'm not letting you get away this time. **Pidgey, use Tackle!** "

Pidgey immediately ran up to the Caterpie and tackled it to the ground. Caterpie, in response, shot back up and tackled Pidgey. **Wild Caterpie used Tackle!**

"Now **Pidgey, use Sand Attack!** " Pidgey kicked sand in Caterpie's face, making it harder for the green bug to see.

"Finally Pidgey, **use Gust!** " Pidgey flapped her wings back and forth, creating strong winds that blew Caterpie away. Caterpie was knocked back into a tree. It was incredibly weakened but had not fainted.

Lindsay decided this was the perfect time to grab a Pokeball from her bag. "Pokeball, go!" She threw a Pokeball at the weakened Caterpie. It shook back and forth before finally dinging. **CATERPIE was caught!**

"Yeah, you son of a bitch. You're mine now," Lindsay said with an evil grin as she picked up Caterpie's pokeball.

"That Caterpie caused you so much trouble and yet you still wanted to catch it?" Ron said bewildered by Lindsay's actions.

"I think we just stepped off on the wrong foot," Lindsay said as she released Caterpie from his pokeball. Once Caterpie was released, he bitterly spewed a string shot at Lindsay's face.

Lindsay was irked by Caterpie's actions but tried not to let it show. "Listen Caterpie, I'm not your enemy. I'm your friend. You must have been hurt from that battle we just had. Here, have some of this potion." Lindsay took out one of her many recently-bought Potions from her bag and sprayed the Caterpie with it. Caterpie felt incredible relief from the potion and presented to Lindsay a happier face.

"See, Caterpie, we can be friends," Lindsay said. Caterpie decided to string shot Lindsay's face once again. "This is going to take awhile."

With the capture of a new Pokemon, Ron and Lindsay continued their trek through Viridian Forest. They never noticed the many other large cocoons that hang from the trees. Sometimes, when people walk through Viridian Forest, they can hear the faintest of screams. Those screams are never answered. Only silenced through slow agonizing pain.

* * *

Back in Viridian City, the Old Man sat peacefully on a bench. Contemplating the decisions he's made that had led him to this pathetic state. He notices people being taken aback by something. It took him awhile to notice what they were being intimidated by. Then, he saw it.

It was a Mankey. A fierce-looking Mankey with a large scar on his right eye. It appeared to be sniffing the air with its pig snout, searching for a faint scent. Suddenly, the Mankey glared at the Old Man. The Old Man became instantly worried. It didn't help that the Mankey was walking closer and closer to him. Old Man flinched his body, having his arms up to block his face from any possible Mankey attacks.

But much to the Old Man's surprise, the Mankey didn't start attacking him. Instead, he came uncomfortably close to the Old Man and started sniffing his body. Mankey was detecting a strange scent off the Old Man. A familiar scent. The Old Man smelled just like the Weedle that he had previously battled. The Weedle that belonged to the guy he was searching for.

After getting a good whiff of that scent, the Mankey let that scent guide him as he dashed towards Viridian City's northern exit. The Old Man was left thoroughly confused.

"I've seen better days."

* * *

It had been 30 minutes since Lindsay caught a Caterpie. Ron and Lindsay were still in Viridian Forest and Lindsay still needed to pee. She tried hiding her discomfort but it was blatantly obvious that she was suffering. Ron was having a little too much fun at Lindsay's expense.

"Hey, Lindsay, nice job in catching that CaterPIE," Ron said putting the most emphasis on that last syllable.

Lindsay knew what Ron was doing and she wasn't liking it. "Can you please stop that? I'm already suffering enough without you making things worse."

"I don't see what the big deal is, Lindsay. This _whole place_ is a public bathroom. Why don't you just go in a bush or something?"

Lindsay was thinking about the possibility and blissfully imagining the relief she would be experiencing. However, she came to her senses. "There is _no way_ that I'm going to _do my business_ in this forest. That is just unladylike."

Ron shrugged. "Suit yourself. Just hope we don't run into any more CaterPIE." Lindsay grumbled to herself as the two continued their walk.

Suddenly, the two encountered a goofy-looking yellow rat with a lightning-bolt tail. Ron gave a smirk upon seeing it. "Looks like we've encountered a PIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII-," Ron said dragging that last word for as insufferably long as possible.

Lindsay pushed Ron away from the wild Pokemon.

"Nope."

"But what about the-"

"Nope. We are GETTING OUT OF THIS FRICKING FOREST!" **Got away safely!**

Both Lindsay and Ron suddenly stopped when they came across another straw-hat wearing kid.

"I might be little, but I won't like it if you go easy on me!" The Bug Catcher said in a childish tone. Ron snickered in response while Lindsay sighed at Ron's immaturity. Ron, then, developed a devilish grin.

"So kid, you want to have a Pokemon battle?" Ron said as Lindsay immediately glared at him.

"Don't you dare," Lindsay said. She stood perfectly straight and aggressively pointed a finger at Ron.

"Absolutely," the Bug Catcher said with glee.

"Ok, then-," Ron said grabbing his pokeballs.

"I'm begging you. Not another Pokemon battle." Lindsay dropped to her knees, hands clasped and shaken. Pleading at Ron for some semblance of mercy.

" **Go Kakuna!** " Ron released his cocoon pokemon as Lindsay screamed to the heavens.

" **Go Metapod!** " The Bug Catcher released another cocoon pokemon but it wasn't like Kakuna. It looked a green chrysalis with a large protruding nose.

After she finished her screaming fit, Lindsay stood up and noticed Ron's new pokemon. "Ah, so you managed to evolve your Weedle."

"I sure did. It's even learned a new move. **Kakuna, use HARDEN!** " Ron said as Kakuna... stood perfectly still. Then, a new cocoon layer slowly wrapped around its shell. The Kakuna did appear slightly harder than it was before. Ron was outraged at how pitiful Kakuna's new move was.

"Nice move you've got there, Ron. Very powerful," Lindsay said sarcastically.

"Seriously, Kakuna, that's what you get after evolving. Unbelievable," Ron said disappointedly.

"That Kakuna looks tough. **Metapod, use Harden!** " The Bug Catcher said as his Metapod got slightly harder.

"Now, **Kakuna, use Poison Sting!** " Ron said as his Kakuna released a poison shot out of... somewhere and directly hit the Metapod. It did little damage.

"Nice job taking the hit, Metapod. Now, **use Harden!** " The Metapod got even harder.

"Okay," Ron said confused by the Bug Catcher's tactics. " **Use Poison Sting, Kakuna!** " Kakuna shot another poison shot at the Metapod. It still didn't do much damage.

"You getting ready for action. **Metapod, use Hard-** "

"Is Harden the only move your Metapod knows?" Ron questioned.

"Ummm... Yeah," Bug Catcher awkwardly replied. "I caught it as a Metapod."

"But that doesn't make any sense," Lindsay pondered. "If all Metapods evolve from Caterpie, then Metapod should, at least, know Tackle like all Caterpies does. It's not like Pokemon are born in their evolved states... or are there?"

Ron's brain hurt from thinking about this logical fallacy. His brain would rather be focused on the battle. " **Use Poison Sting again, Kakuna!** " Kakuna did another poison shot. Suddenly, the Metapod was shaking a bit. **Metapod became poisoned!** Metapod ended up losing slightly more health.

Then, came a series of Poison Stings, Hardens, and Poisonings. Lindsay's legs were trembling at this point. She wanted to hold her crotch so bad. However, she didn't want anyone around here seeing her in such a state. She went over to Ron, who was about to order his Kakuna to use Poison Sting again and tugged on his shirt sleeves. "Switch out to your Charmander or Spearow. ANY POKEMON THAT CAN DO MORE DAMAGE THAN YOUR FRICKING KAKUNA!"

"Lindsay, don't you know that Kakuna is the weakest pokemon on my team. I'm trying to level him up so that he can become a stronger Pokemon." Despite Ron's explanation, Lindsay knew that Ron just wanted to make this battle take as long as humanly possible.

After a long agonizing battle, Ron's Kakuna defeated the Bug Catcher's Metapod.

 _Okay, he just has one more Pokemon. This should be a quicker battle as long as it's not-_ , Lindsay thought before Bug Catcher threw his pokeball.

" **Go Metapod!** "

"WHY DO YOU HAVE TWO OF THESE USELESS POKEMON?!" Lindsay shouted at the Bug Catcher. The scream freaked out both Ron and the Bug Catcher but the battle continued as per usual.

" **Metapod, use HARDEN!** "

" **Kakuna, use Poison Sting!** "

Lindsay proceeded to crouch into a ball and cry.

* * *

 **20 MINUTES LATER...**

Ron's Kakuna defeated the Bug Catcher's second Metapod. Lindsay leaned on a large tree; her legs excessively shaking as Lindsay looks miserably desperate.

"Oh man, I thought I was going to win," the Bug Catcher said in disappointment.

"Seriously! Your Pokemon sucked. They really, really sucked," Ron bluntly stated. The Bug Catcher was trying to hold back tears while he gave Ron some Pokedollars out of his pocket.

After the Bug Catcher left, Ron noticed that Kakuna was suddenly glowing. The glow grabbed Lindsay's attention away from her large bladder as she walked towards Ron's changing Kakuna. Ron and Lindsay watched Kakuna emerging from its cocoon state, revealing a large yellow bee with black stripes and huge drills for hands. **KAKUNA evolved into BEEDRILL!** Ron was in absolute awe at his bug pokemon's new badass-looking evolution.

"Wow, Beedrill, you look incredible." Ron's smile reached cheek-to-cheek. Even Lindsay was impressed that Ron managed to get one of his pokemon to reach its final form so quickly. Then, her body reminded Lindsay that she had some urgent business that needed taking care of.

"Ron, can we PLEASE go now?"

Ron looked at Lindsay's face and could tell she was really suffering. The new evolution gave Ron a more chipper temperament. Plus, seeing Lindsay in such a sad state made Ron feel slightly bad about his actions.

"Yeah, let's get going to Pewter City," Ron said in a cheerful tone. Lindsay was surprised by the sudden change in Ron's attitude. But she wasn't thinking much of it. She was just glad that they were finally going to get out of this awful forest.

Then, Ron and Lindsay encountered another wild Pokemon. This one was different, however. It wasn't a Caterpie or a Weedle they found. It was a _Mankey_.

"Woah, is that Mankey?" Lindsay said checking her Pokedex. "You don't usually see Mankeys around this area."

Ron was initially nervous upon seeing it but didn't want to let it show. "Oh yeah, I've seen a Mankey before. They can be pretty tough. Maybe we should avoid battling this one."

Lindsay looked back at Ron. She never saw him act so cautious. Ron could see a bewildered look on Lindsay's face and thus, tried bringing back a bit of his bravado. "We can totally take it down. **Go Charmander!** "

"That's weird," Lindsay said staring at the wild Pokemon's data. "This Mankey has a way higher level than the other wild Pokemon here in Viridian Forest."

The Mankey didn't move. In fact, it just stood there and stared directly at the Charmander. Upon his release, Charmander looked worried. The fire lizard turned his head back at Ron, wanting to let his trainer know about his concern.

Ron bent down on one knee to get closer to his Charmander, trying to console the frightened starter. "Don't worry, Charmander, you're going to be fine. This is clearly a diff-"

In that moment, Ron noticed the scar that the wild Mankey had on its right eye. A scar in the exact same area where his Charmander struck that wild Mankey back on Route 22. Ron couldn't believe it. He couldn't believe that this Mankey managed to follow him all the way to Viridian Forest. Ron knew, in that moment, that this Mankey wasn't looking for a battle. He was looking for blood.

Ron immediately returned Charmander back into his pokeball. He, then, grabbed Lindsay's arm and dashed away from the primal Mankey.

"What are you doing, Ron?"

"I'm getting out of this forest. That's what I'm doing," Ron said with urgency in his voice.

"You're not even going to battle the Mankey?"

"I'm not letting that thing hurt my Pokemon."

The Mankey heard those words being uttered. _Not letting that thing hurt my Pokemon. Not letting. Not letting. That thing. That thing. Hurt my Pokemon. Hurt. Hurt my Pokemon._

In that moment, Mankey flashed back to a distant memory. He had lost another battle and his trainer was not pleased. The buff trainer kicked the young Mankey to the ground.

"You lost again! Only the strong deserve to be on my team! If you don't prove yourself to me, I'm letting you go into the wild!" Mankey was struggling to get back up, only for his trainer to kick him down once more.

Once the wild Mankey came back to his senses, he glared intensely as Ron and Lindsay were running away from him. Mankey went into a mad sprint after the two trainers, going faster than a flaming Rapidash. Ron turned his head and saw the vicious Mankey approaching him. Despite the head start Ron had, Mankey was able to catch up to him in seconds. Once the Mankey got practically inches away from Ron, he leaped high into the air.

Ron felt a large weight on his shoulders. It was Mankey gripping onto Ron's head. Ron tried violently shaking the Mankey off. The furry fighter eventually got off Ron's head and vanished into the tall grass. With the Mankey gone, Ron and Lindsay stopped in their tracks to catch their breath. Both were incredibly exhausted from that intense chase and decided to sit down on the grass.

"What's the deal with that crazy Mankey?" Lindsay pondered.

"I saw that pokemon back at Route 22. He completely decimated my team. This made me faint and sent me all the way back to Pallet Town... somehow?"

"Seriously," Lindsay said sincerely. "So that's why you were taking so long. I thought you had just abandoned me, going off to Viridian Forest on your own."

Ron let out a laugh in response. "Are you serious? I thought _you_ abandoned _me_ when you went to Viridian Forest without me."

Lindsay stood up from the grass. "Well, I'm sorry if I made you think that. We're brand new trainers straight out of Pallet Town. We should stick together." Lindsay put her hand out to help Ron up. Ron looked up and saw Lindsay's shining smile. "Traveling buddies."

Ron grinned back, holding her hand as she helped picked him up. "Traveling buddies."

When Ron stood up, Lindsay noticed something off about Ron's appearance. She, then, realized why. "Ron, you're missing your hat."

"What?" Ron exclaimed as he felt the top of his head. He could feel the absence of his hat. Ron started frantically searching his bag, his body, and the general area around him to see where his hat had gone. Then, he remembered the Mankey that was on his head and suddenly, became enraged. "That Mankey must have taken my hat!"

Lindsay placed a hand on Ron's shoulders. "I think it's for the best if we let the Mankey keep it."

Ron slumped into a depressed state, lowering his shoulders and staring down at the floor. "I guess you're right." He put his hands in his pockets and started to kick patches of grass. "That was my favorite hat."

* * *

Ron and Lindsay walked for a few minutes before seeing a large building at the very end of the pathway. Ron and Lindsay smiled upon seeing it.

"That must be the exit. Pewter City, here we come," Ron said.

Lindsay was just as excited as Ron to be finally reaching the exit. But for completely different reasons... Lindsay felt her entire body twitch in agony. She was going to burst if she didn't reach a bathroom in time. In that instant, Lindsay made a mad dash to the exit.

"PEWTER CITY, HERE I GO!" Lindsay exclaimed as she ran past Ron towards the exit. However, Ron didn't want to be left in the dust.

"Hey, wait up," Ron said chasing after Lindsay.

After an exciting expedition through Viridian Forest, our heroes dash towards the exit. Next stop: Pewter City. How will their first ever gym battle turn out? Will Lindsay make it to a restroom? Will that crazy Mankey stop following Ron? All these questions and more will be answered (maybe) in the next exciting installment.

Deep into Viridian Forest, Mankey sits solemnly with his legs crossed. Mankey holds Ron's red hat with both of his hands. His eyes deeply inspect the details of this hat, letting it flow through his fingers. Mankey, then, stared at the inside of the hat. Putting the hat closer to his face, the Mankey took a large whiff of the hat's scent. He, then, placed the hat on top of the pokemon's furry head, staring off into the distance.

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**


	4. Solid As A Brock!

**PREVIOUSLY ON "POKEMON LEAFS ON FIRE"...**

Ron got himself involved in another battle with a youthful Bug Catcher. The Bug Catcher sent out his Weedle, while Ron sent out his Charmander. Lindsay still needed to piss really badly.

" **Charmander, use Ember!** " Ron commanded. Charmander released a small ball of fire directly at the Weedle as the Weedle burst into flames and instantly fainted.

Ron and Charmander celebrated on another victory. But unbeknownst to them, a spark from Charmander's Ember got onto a nearby tree. The flame would eventually spread to engulf the entire forest in a wildfire.

Neither Ron nor Lindsay was aware of this. As the two trainers continued their journey, they left behind a trail of flames.

 **NOW, BACK TO THE SHOW...**

Last time, Ron and Lindsay trekked through the wild fields of Viridian Forest. In that time, Lindsay got herself a new Pokemon, a rebellious Caterpie, while Ron's Weedle managed to fully evolve into a strong Beedrill. A wild Mankey was also encountered, giving the two trainers a wily chase and stealing Ron's hat in the process. Now, Ron and Lindsay make their way to Pewter City where they can hopefully take part in their first ever gym battle.

After a lengthy walk through Route 2, Ron and Lindsay arrived in Pewter City. They were intrigued by their new surroundings. It seemed very familiar to Viridian City but there appeared to be fewer buildings and more greenery. They noticed a large museum that loomed over the city. But what really caught their eyes was the large brown-roofed building with large letters printed above the door saying " **PEWTER CITY GYM** ". Upon seeing the large building, Ron and Lindsay felt a surge of excitement rush through their bodies. _At least, this one's not closed_ , Ron thought to himself.

But before they went to the Pewter City Gym, the two eager trainers decided to make a pit stop at the Pokemon Center. Not only to heal their pokemon but also, in Lindsay's case, to make use of their public restroom. Lindsay had been holding it in since she arrived in Viridian Forest. And with the loads of detours she had to go through on the way, she was at her very limits.

"I swear if I don't get to a bathroom _this instant_. The dam's going to burst and the whole town will get flooded," Lindsay said as the two trainers walked through the automatic doors. Ron couldn't resist chuckling at Lindsay's desperate situation.

Ron and Lindsay arrived at the counter where Nurse Joy was sitting. The pink-haired nurse was typing heavily on the computer before glancing over to see Ron and Lindsay. She gave a smile upon seeing them.

"Welcome to the Pokemon Center? How may I help you?" said the cheerful nurse.

Ron looked at the nurse in confusion. "Wait, didn't I see you back in Viridian City?"

Nurse Joy looked confused at first before realising the situation. "Oh, you must be thinking about my cousin. We get mistaken for each other all the time as we do with all of our other relatives." Nurse Joy showed a picture on her desk featuring a group of Nurse Joys that looked completely identical to each other. They were all even wearing the same nurse uniform. Ron and Lindsay looked at the picture completely dumbfounded.

"Can you heal our Pokemon for us?" Ron said as both Ron and Lindsay each put their three Pokeballs on the counter.

"That won't be a problem," Nurse Joy said cheerfully as she took the pokeballs off the counter and placed them on a steel tray to be sent for healing. Nurse Joy looked at Ron and Lindsay attentively. She could tell from their expressions and wardrobe that they were not from around Pewter City. This got Nurse Joy curious and thus, she questioned the two visitors. "You guys don't like you're around here. Are you guys travelling Pokemon trainers?"

"Yep, indeed. We're here to go to the Pewter City Gym to battle its gym leader," Ron exclaimed with bravado.

Nurse Joy gave a forced grin upon hearing that. "Oh, I see. You want to battle _that guy_." Nurse Joy tried to sound happy but her contempt was clearly heard.

Ron was slightly baffled by Nurse Joy's reaction. It seemed like she had some previous experience with the Gym Leader. "Yeah, do you know anything about him?"

Nurse Joy started shaking her head and waving her hands while trying to keep a smile on her face, clearly wanting to change the topic. "N-not at all. A-anything else you need help with?" Nurse Joy then slightly flinched when she looked back at Lindsay.

Lindsay looked like she was about to explode. Her eyes were bugged out. Her knees were shaking intensely. She was sweating profusely. She was an absolute mess that seemed close to shedding tears. "Can you _please_ tell me where the girl's bathroom is?" Lindsay tried to make a smile but it just made her look psychotic.

Nurse Joy awkwardly smiled back as a tear of sweat dropped on her face. "Just go to in the back aisle and take a right." Nurse Joy pointed in the direction of the restroom.

Lindsay's face lightened up with joy upon hearing those words. She followed those exact directions and could see at the far end of the aisle, the lady's room. Lindsay was ecstatic to have finally reached the bathroom. However, that happy feeling was short-lived. Lindsay appeared completely flushed (no pun intended) with disappointment upon turning the corner. There was a line. _A long line._ The line reached the door at the far end of the hallway to where Lindsay was standing. Tears were running down Lindsay's face as she took her place in the line.

"I hate being a girl!"

Ron walked over to see Lindsay completely distraught as she stood miserably in a seemingly endless line. The brash teen carried one of his freshly-healed pokeballs in his hand. "It looks you're a little preoccupied at the moment." Lindsay glared at Ron as he continued. "Well, I'm going to the Pewter City Gym. Don't worry. I'll be back… along with my first badge."

Ron gave a smug grin, trying to spin a Pokeball on his pointer finger. It almost immediately drops on the floor. After picking up the Pokeball, Ron left the Pokemon Center while Lindsay lets out an agonizing sigh.

* * *

Standing in a proud stance, Ron stared at the entrance to the Pewter City Gym. He wasn't sure how the battle was going to play out. But as he gripped his pokeballs, he knew that he was ready. Well, he was pretty sure he was ready at least.

As he entered the Gym's large doors, he was taken aback by the Gym's elaborate indoor design. The inside had a rocky terrain full of large boulders. The floor was ladened with rubble and dust. The dust made Ron sneeze upon sniffing it. Ron noticed a weird-looking, wrinkly middle-aged man with large glasses and a bowl haircut, leaning on a post looking completely uninterested.

"So I'm guessing you want to challenge the Gym Leader?" The gawky man said in a monotone voice.

"Absolutely," Ron said with confidence. "Are you the Gym Leader?"

"No, I'm just the Gym Guide. I give trainers information about the Gym Leader to help them in a battle. If you have any questions, I will try my best to answer."

Ron felt like this guy would be more at home guiding a museum tour with how lifeless he was. "Who is the Gym Leader then?"

Rather than giving him the answer, the Gym Guide simply pointing to the post he was leaning on. The post resembled a large stone tablet with the words being etched into its smooth surface. On the very top of the post, it read " **BROCK, THE ROCK-SOLID POKEMON TRAINER!** " Right below that title was a long list of trainers that had beaten Brock, one of the names was familiar to Ron.

"Gary already beat him?" Ron exclaimed with surprise.

"Yeah, he did. It took him only five minutes to beat Brock," the Gym Guide said. Ron angrily grumbled upon hearing this before giving a more confident smirk.

 _If Gary managed to beat this Gym Leader so quickly, then I shouldn't have any trouble_ , Ron thought.

Ron walked past the Gym Guide when the brash teen noticed a long rocky path that led to a large stone chair. In that chair was a tall man with brown spiky hair, tan skin, and a noticeable pair of squinty eyes. He wore a long-sleeved orange shirt with a black undershirt along with a pair of green cargo pants that were held tightly around his waist by a black belt. The man was sitting down as a sturdy as a rock with a stone-faced expression on his face. Ron knew that this man was Brock, the Pewter City Gym Leader.

Upon seeing the young trainer walking towards him, Brock stood up from his chair with his back straightened. He walked a few steps forward, getting dust on his brown loafers. Only when Ron got close enough to him did Brock say anything.

"You wish to challenge me?" Brock said as Ron nodded in response. "Very well. My name is Brock. I'm the Pewter City Gym Leader. My rock-hard willpower is evident even in my Pokemon. My Pokemon are all rock hard-"

Ron couldn't help himself from snickering every time Brock had said the phrase _rock hard_.

"What's so funny?" Brock said slightly confused. His stoic face briefly showed signs of confusion before switching back to his unflinching demeanor. "Anyway, my Pokemon are all rock hard. Don't let your guard down because my Pokemon will strongly penetrate your forces and blow you away."

Ron laughed out loud in response to Brock's accidental innuendos. He rolled on the floor laughing as dust and dirt got on Ron's clothes. Brock didn't understand Ron's peculiar response. Ron's laughing eventually died down as Brock decided to skip the long-winded introduction and get straight to the point.

"Yadda yadda yadda. I use Rock-type Pokemon. You're going to lose. Defense is awesome. Trainer's honor and all that junk," Brock concluded his monolog. The two, then, stood in awkward silence for a couple of seconds before Brock asked. "Is this your first time fighting a Gym Leader?"

"Noooooo...", Ron said trying to deny his beginning trainer status. However, Brock was not fooled.

"Well, since you are a beginner. I'll only be using two of my Pokemon. You can use as many Pokemon as you want. Each Gym Leader fights in different ways and thus, will be offering you a different kind of challenge. However, there is one consistent rule that all Gym Leader have to follow. You can also switch your Pokemon whenever you'd like whereas I cannot. You understand?" Brock explained as Ron nodded his head.

"You're going down, Spiky-head," Ron confidently said as he pointed one of his index fingers down at the ground.

Brock gave a cocky smile as he threw his pokeball. " **Go! GEODUDE!** "

A Pokemon resembling a large rough gray rock with arms emerged from the pokeball. It was also somehow able to levitate off the ground.

"How is that thing floating in mid-air?" Ron said completely puzzled as he took out his Pokedex for a possible explanation. "Geodude the Rock Pokemon. People mistake it for boulders and often trip or step on them. This has caused an increase in deaths by 'Geodude ass-kickings'. Still nothing on how that damn rock can float?"

"Ummm... hello," Brock said trying to get Ron's attention. "Do you want to battle or not?"

Ron realized that the battle had just started and he hasn't taken out one of his Pokemon yet. "My bad. **Go Beedrill!** "

After Ron sent out his Beedrill, he noticed both Brock and his Geodude smirking and giggling slightly. Ron didn't know why they were laughing but it didn't matter much to him. He knew fully well that he was going to be victorious. " **Beedrill, use Fury Attack!** "

Beedrill dashed towards the Geodude and bash the anthropomorphic rock repeatedly with his drill hands. This attack didn't seem to phase Geodude, however, as it gave Beedrill a cocky grin and laugh. Beedrill seemed perplexed by Geodude's behavior.

"My turn. **Geodude, use Tackle!** " Brock commanded as Geodude pounded Beedrill across the face with his rocky hand. That attack greatly weakened Beedrill but the giant bee wasn't out yet.

"Beedrill, poison that Geodude with a **Poison Sting!** " Beedrill shot a poison dart through his large drill hands. It directly hit the Geodude but it, again, proved to be not very effective.

"Geodude, **Tackle again!** " Geodude gave a swift right hook towards Beedrill's gut which greatly hurt the flying bug pokemon. Beedrill couldn't take such a brutal hit and collapsed hard on the floor. **Beedrill fainted!** As he returned Beedrill back into his pokeball, Ron felt a tad guilty letting Beedrill take so much abuse from that Geodude. Brock chuckled which really got on Ron's nerves.

"What's so funny?" Ron shouted at Brock which returned the giggling Gym Leader back to his deadpan attitude.

"Did you seriously expect _a Bug-type pokemon_ to be capable of taking down my _rock-type_ Geodude? It looks like you just evolved it from Viridian Forest too. Do you know how many Bug Catchers I have beaten that use the exact same low-leveled pokemon? Plenty. But that doesn't really matter because even if you trained it really well, Beedrill would still have the type disadvantage and wouldn't so much as _dent_ my rock-type Pokemon!" Brock smugly stated. This tirade really got Ron fuming mad.

 _Brock has some big balls comparing me to a stupid Bug Catcher_ , Ron thought as he sent out his next Pokemon to hopefully wipe away Brock's confident mug. " **Go Spearow!** " Geodude kept on laughing upon seeing Ron's Spearow. " **Use Fury Attack!** "

Spearow flew over to Geodude and was about to attack Brock's pokemon with her beak. However, the squinty-eyed Gym Leader gave a command to Geodude in that very instant. " **Geodude, use Defense Curl!** " As soon as Brock gave the command, Geodude curled his entire body into a ball, making it appear just like an ordinary floating rock. Spearow tried excessively pecking Geodude to inflict damage. However, Geodude's Defense Curl made it even more difficult for the attack to hurt him. Spearow paused in confusion over whether she is truly accomplishing anything. Brock didn't waste the opportunity to catch Spearow off-guard by instantly announcing an attack. "Now, **Geodude, use Tackle!** "

Geodude, in the span of a few seconds, got out of his Defense Curl and smashed his entire body against Ron's Spearow. The attack proved to be super effective as Spearow fell to the ground in pain. **Spearow fainted!**

"This just shows the best offense is a good defense," Brock said as Ron returned Spearow back to his pokeball. Ron was getting sick and tired of Brock constantly talking about how awesome his defense is.

 _This is not good. I'm down to my last Pokemon and I haven't even damaged his first Pokemon_ , Ron thought incredibly worried. This was not at all how he expected this match to turn out. In spite of his worries, Ron felt a sense of determination rush through his body. He wasn't going to give up so easily. Ron was going to show this cocky Gym Leader what he was truly made of.

* * *

Lindsay had been waiting on the line to the girl's bathroom for the past 30 minutes. She learned the reason for the long wait was because most of the toilets were out of order with only one working toilet remaining.

 _Just my luck_ , Lindsay thought to herself. At this point, Lindsay's squeezed bladder was beyond the point of desperation and was now reaching a Code-Red emergency. Lindsay was holding herself tightly with all her might to resist making a public accident. Occasionally, Lindsay saw a guy entering the boy's bathroom and coming out a minute later, completely relieved. Lindsay really envied the male gender at this moment.

After much waiting, Lindsay had finally reached the girl's bathroom door. She just needed to wait for the last girl to leave the restroom for Lindsay to experience true relief. The moment that Lindsay had been anticipating would soon arrive which was good because the white-hatted girl wasn't sure if she could make it if she had a wait for even a minute longer.

An open smile came upon her face as she saw the last girl leaving the restroom. It was a brown-haired lass with a blue bow in her hair, wearing a white shirt, short blue skirt, and long white stockings that reached to her knees. It seemed like the Lass came straight out of school with that attire. But Lindsay wasn't too concerned about the girl as she was finally going to go to the toilet. Lindsay was about to make a mad dash for the restroom but that young lass grabbed Lindsay by the arm, stopping the desperate trainer in her tracks.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" Lass said with an obnoxious tone in her voice.

"I'm going to the bathroom! Just like everyone else in this line!" Lindsay bursted out. She wasn't usually this brash and mean but she really didn't have the time to chat.

"You look like you're a Pokemon trainer," Lass said grabbing a Pokeball from her waist.

Lindsay's expression immediately fell flat upon realizing what the Lass wanted. "You've got to be kidding me."

"How about we have ourselves a Pokemon battle right n-" Lass was interrupted when Lindsay pushed the young girl out of the way of the bathroom door. Lindsay, then, rushed through the doors to get to the one working stall. The Lass looked surprised by Lindsay's actions. Even the other desperate women waiting in line were surprised about Lindsay denying a Pokemon battle request.

However, Lindsay didn't regret rejecting the Pokemon battle request. As a matter of fact, Lindsay was experiencing a whole new glorious sensation. The demons that had caused her suffering for so long were finally escaping from her body. Lindsay closed her eyes and cried happy tears as she finally reached _Nirvana_.

* * *

Ron slowly got out his last Pokeball and threw it on the ground. " **Go Charmander!** " Ron shouted as he revealed his lizard pokemon to Brock and his Geodude.

Brock, once again, started chuckling to himself. "You seriously went for Charmander as your starter? You know Fire is not effective against Rock-types. If you had chosen Squirtle or Bulbasaur, you would have gotten a better chance of beating me."

Ron could see that Charmander was feeling insecure because of Brock's personal attack. Now, Ron was really pissed now. _Brock has some nerve. How dare he make fun of my starter like that?_

"Come on, Charmander. Let's show him what you got. **Charmander, use Ember!** " Ron said to Charmander as the fire lizard looked back at Ron, gaining a look of assurance. Charmander shot a beam of fire out of his mouth.

" **Defense Curl, Geodude!** " Brock shouted in that instant as Geodude, once again, curled up his body into a ball. Although the fire directly hit Geodude, the attack proved not very effective. " **Now, Geodude, use Tackle!** " Geodude quickly came out of his ball form, catching Charmander completely off guard, and smashed his rocky fist against Charmander's face.

Charmander was greatly hurt by that blow. Geodude returned to smugly laughing at Charmander, adding insult to injury. Charmander's anger was growing as the Geodude continued laughing. Ron could empathize with Charmander's situation, having dealt with bullies before, and wanted to reassure Charmander to not let Geodude get to him. But before he could say that, Ron notices a white glow on Charmander's right hand. Large white claws protruded from Charmander's glowing hand. In that instant, Charmander dashed towards the laughing Geodude and made a large scratch across the rock pokemon's face. **Charmander learned Metal Claw!**

"Woah," Ron murmured after watching the events unfold. Geodude was caught off-guard by Charmander's attack, feeling an incredible amount of pain. Geodude stumbled about before crashing towards the gym's rocky floor. Brock shouted at Geodude, trying to convince it to continue battling but it was to no avail. **Brock's Geodude fainted!** Brock appeared shocked as he returned Geodude to his pokeball.

"That was amazing what you just did, Charmander," Ron exclaimed as Charmander returned a smile back at his trainer. Ron, then, gave out a large laugh and pointed directly at Brock. "Ha! Looks like my Charmander could totally beat your rock-type Pokemon. Guess that strong defense didn't save you this time."

Brock cracked a skewed smile. "Not bad, kid. But if you think this battle's over, you are quite mistaken. I still have one Pokemon yet and he's sure to pack a punch. **Go Onix!** "

Brock threw a pokeball on the rocky ground. Out from the small Pokeball was a large pokemon resembling a chain of gray boulders with a stone magnet protruding from its head. Onix released a large roar as Ron and Charmander watched slightly intimidated. Ron was concerned about his chances but quickly stopped doubting himself. He came this far and was not going to back down now.

"Charmander! Uhhhh... do that thing you did to beat the Geodude?" Once again, Charmander's right hand glowed white as claws emerged from his hand, leaping in the air preparing to strike.

" **Onix, use Harden!** " Brock exclaimed as Onix's body developed a shinier rock layer over his body. Charmander struck across the rock snake's midsection but Onix's hardened layer lessened some of the damage from that attack. Brock's stern expression once again shifted to confident grin. "Time for the endgame, Onix! **Use Rock Tomb!** "

Onix released a ferocious roar. Suddenly, large boulders from the ground surrounded Charmander's area. Before Charmander could consider escaping, these large boulders had already trapped him in.

"Charmander, get out of there!" Ron shouted at Charmander, clearly concerned about what Brock had planned. Charmander stood alone in this dark rocky prison, trying to scratch his way out with little success.

Onix delivered to Ron a stone-cold stare. The rock snake, then, shifted his attention to the rocky prison he trapped Charmander in. Moving slowly towards his sculpted creation, Onix became to surround the structure with his long snake-like body. Charmander heard these movements from inside this Rock Tomb and starting to cry out for help. Ron could hear Charmander's muffled screams from inside the rocky construction as he gritted his teeth with a mix of anger and regret. After circling around the stone prison, Onix pressed his whole body around the structure, squeezing the walls inward. Charmander watched as the walls were closing in on him until eventually... _Crunch!_ Onix crushed the rock formation to bits with the fire lizard inside.

"Charmander!" Ron screamed out as he rushed towards the large pile of rubble that Onix left behind. Onix simply walked over to his trainer who stood solemnly silent. Rapidly burying his hands with rocks and scooping them away, Ron searched for his starter pokemon in the debris. Eventually, he spotted the glow of Charmander's burning tail. Unfortunately, the flame on Charmander's tail appeared dimmer than usual. Ron knew from its Pokedex entry that the fire on a Charmander's tail is connected to their life-force. If their flame was ever extinguished, a Charmander would die.

Ron scooped away more rubble from the area, fully revealing a passed-out Charmander. Charmander appeared in an incredible state of pain from that Rock Tomb. Ron picked up his Charmander into his arms and pressed the lizard's chest to his ear. Fortunately, Ron could distinctly hear a heartbeat. Ron returned his unconscious Charmander back to his pokeball. Tears began to run down Ron's eyes from this series of events. Brock decided to walk over to Ron to try and talk to him.

"Listen, young man. I'm sorry about what happened to your Charmander but pokemon battling can be incredibly dangerous. If you or your Pokemon are not prepared, they both can risk being seriously hurt. Look-" Brock's speech was cut in his tracks when he noticed Ron slowly fall down to the ground. Brock walked closer and saw Ron passed out cold. **RON is out of usable Pokemon! RON whited out!** Brock knelt down on one knee at Ron's unconscious body... and then, proceeded to take some Pokedollars out of Ron's jean pockets.

* * *

Ron felt a massive headache as he woke up from a strange daze. As he opened his eyes, he saw a large shape that formed into the face of a woman with loops in her pink hair. He realized he was staring at Nurse Joy.

"Oh, you seem to be waking up," Nurse Joy said as Ron pushed himself up from what appeared to be a hospital bed.

Ron appeared fine, only slightly bruised from the fall. Although, Ron did feel a few Pokedollars lighter.

"You are probably wondering what happened to you. Well, you apparently fainted after losing to the Gym Leader Brock. Brock decided to directly send your unconscious body directly to the Pokemon Center," Nurse Joy said before muttering under her breath in annoyance. " _But not before trying to flirt with me first..._ "

Ron didn't hear the last part. He was more focused on the humiliating loss that he had against Brock. That Gym Leader's pokemon completely creamed his entire team. He only managed to beat Brock's Geodude because Charmander happened to learn a new move at that moment. After that, Charmander stood no chance against that beastly Onix. Ron heavily contemplated he should do about this loss until his thought process was interrupted by Nurse Joy.

"By the way, you have a visitor, Mister... ASSFACE," Nurse Joy said looking at her patient's records. Nurse Joy, then, left the room as Ron silently groaned to himself. That groaning stopped once Ron saw Lindsay enter the room. She appeared to have a large smile on her face as she sat down on Ron's bed.

"Hey Ron, I see you are in the Pokemon Center. What happened? You got to beat up by a Rattata or something," Lindsay asked.

"Nah, I just fainted again after losing another battle. I don't know why that keeps happening to me," Ron explained in a confused tone. He then noticed Lindsay's large smile that made him equally confused. "What are you smiling about? Did you finally take a piss?"

"Yes, I did but that isn't why I'm smiling," Lindsay replied. "I'm happy because after I went to the bathroom, I headed straight to the Pewter City Gym where I managed to defeat the gym leader and receive the Boulder Badge."

Lindsay took out a tin case from her bag and opened it, revealing a small badge that resembled a gray octagon with ridges. Ron immediately became envious upon seeing it.

"You managed to defeat Brock. How?" Ron exclaimed.

"He wasn't much of a challenge. My Bulbasaur and her Grass-type moves were more than enough to take down Brock's two Pokemon," Lindsay said confidently which only fueled Ron's depressed and envious state. Ron lowered his head, staring directly at the floor. Lindsay noticed Ron's saddened state and became slightly concerned. "Ron, are you alright?"

"Not really. Brock completely destroyed my team and was mocking me while doing so. He said I was destined to lose because I choose Charmander while the other two starters had a type advantage," Ron explained. His voice fuming with anger. Lindsay stared at Ron with a bewildered expression.

"That's weird. Brock didn't act like that at all when I battled him," Lindsay said as Ron looked at Lindsay with surprise.

"Seriously, he didn't act cocky or mean-spirited?"

"Nope. In fact, when he saw me enter the gym, he asked me out on a date first."

Ron scratched his head in confusion, expecting to feel his hat. When he felt his hair instead, Ron was reminded of what had happened to his hat. Although slightly saddened by this reminder, Ron didn't let that get to him as he became more focused on Brock. "That's so strange."

Lindsay put a hand on Ron's shoulder to comfort him. "I'm sorry that your match with Brock didn't go so well but that shouldn't keep you down. You are just starting out. I'm sure when you do more battles, then you'll become more experienced and beat trainers like Brock with ease."

Lindsay's encouraging words didn't really get through to Ron as he sulked in his hospital chair. "I betcha I would have won if I had a water or grass-type pokemon with me."

"Well, there aren't any water or grass-type pokemon available near Pewter City. But those aren't the only types that rock is weak towards. There is also fighting-" Lindsay immediately stopped herself as she remembered their experiences with that dangerous wild Mankey.

Ron remembered that intense first battle he had with the Mankey upon hearing Lindsay's comment. It was such a strong and intimidating pokemon. In spite of the trouble that pig monkey pokemon caused him, Ron still partly wished that such a strong and competitive pokemon could be a part of his team. Mankey would have totally destroyed Brock's rock-type Pokemon. But Ron wasn't going to risk another encounter with that psychotic primate.

"Come on. I think the best course of action is to take a break from Pewter City. We can train in Route 3. There are probably stronger wild Pokemon and trainers to battle there," Lindsay said attempting to cheer Ron up.

Upon hearing Lindsay's word, Ron decided to stop letting that loss against Brock get to him. He wasn't gonna beat Brock by moping around. He was gonna beat Brock by getting stronger. Ron will make sure the next battle against Brock would be a sure-fire victory. Getting up from his hospital bed, Ron grabbed his bag and looked towards Lindsay with a cocky smile.

"Yeah, let's get out of this crummy town. I need to train my pokemon," Ron said more confidently.

Although Ron's first gym battle ended in defeat, Ron is more determined than ever to defeat Brock and claim the Boulder Badge for himself. Lindsay's off-screen battle with Brock was also as successful as her search for the porcelain throne. But enough about Lindsay, what will happen next on Ron's journey to defeat the Pokemon League and become a Pokemon Master? You'll just have to see the next installment to find out.

On the very outskirts of Route 2, a furry figure examines the surrounding of his environment through the bushes. Suddenly, the wild pokemon jumps up to a nearby tree branch and crouches upon it. This mysterious figure (that is totally not that wild Mankey you have been reading about for the past couple of chapters) jumped from tree to tree until finally reaching a signpost. Past that signpost was the path to a large bustling city. The Mank-I mean, unknown Pokemon stared at the signpost which had large black letters on it saying " **PEWTER CITY"**. The Pokemon stood and stared at this large city as he took out a red hat from the top of his head. He got a sniff of the hat's scent before quickly shuffling towards the path.

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**


	5. Mankey Business!

**PREVIOUSLY ON "POKEMON LEAFS ON FIRE"...**

Ron and Lindsay were still in the Pokemon Center, making sure their pokemon were freshly healed. The two trainers were about to leave the Pokemon Center when Nurse Joy walked over to get their attention.

"Um, excuse me, you were about to leave the Center without paying your bill?" Nurse Joy said as Ron and Lindsay stared at the nurse with a confused expression.

"I thought you didn't have to pay for these services," Ron questioned.

"Well, you don't have to pay for healing your _pokemon_ but healing humans... are a different story," Nurse Joy hesitantly explained before handing Ron a piece of paper.

Ron looked over at the paper that Nurse Joy gave him, realizing it's his medical bill. Ron quickly looked through the contents of this paper before his eyes shifted to the very bottom of the bill. Ron's eyes burst open as he looked at the cost.

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTTT?!" Ron exclaimed from the top of his lungs. The shout was heard throughout Pewter City.

 **NOW, BACK TO THE SHOW!**

Ron and Lindsay were walking towards Route 3. Ron regained his confidence and was back to his usual cocky self. He was going to train extra hard to not suffer another humiliating defeat. Ron began punching the air as he made various kung fu poses that he saw from a couple of films, making loud screams when performing said poses. Lindsay just awkwardly stared at him.

"You really are excited to leave Pewter City?" Lindsay awkwardly stated.

"Yeah, Pewter City was cool but I need to train harder before I come back here. I want to make sure the next time I face Brock I return victorious," Ron replied as he continued acting like a martial arts master or a complete buffoon. "By time the time we get to the next gym, I should be ready to wipe that Gym Leader's team without a problem."

Lindsay checked her Pokedex to learn the whereabouts of the next gym. "Well, the closest gym from here is in Cerulean City. And it looks the Gym Leader there specializes in-"

Before Lindsay could finish her sentence, Ron accidentally bumped into a tall man completely draped in black. The man had a large toothy grin that made Ron and Lindsay uncomfortable.

"Hey! You two are trainers, right? Have you received the Boulder Badge yet?" The tall smiling man said as he stood a little too close to the two.

"Well, I have," Lindsay said as she took out the tin case and presented her badge to the smiling man.

"Well, I don't," Ron replied as he simply put his hands in his jean pockets.

Upon hearing that, the tall man's gaze was fixed directly on Ron. The man in black bent down to have his cheeky face directly face Ron's creeped-out face.

"Brock's looking for new challengers! Follow me!" The tall man immediately grabbed Ron by the collar of his shirt and started dragging Ron's body in the direction towards the Pewter City Gym. But Ron was heavily resisting the Tall Man's attempts to drag his body away.

"Get your hands off me, you creepy sonofab-" Ron's rant got interrupted when, out of the blue, a strange Pokemon rushed over and tackled the tall man.

Ron dusted the touch of the weird man off his clothes when he turned his head and saw the fast pokemon violently beat up the smiling stranger. Even when getting brutally beaten by a wild pokemon, the strange man kept a cheek-to-cheek grin on his face. Eventually, the wild Pokemon grabbed the black-suited man by his shirt collar and threw him high into the air where the man appeared as only a spark in the sky.

As the two trainers tried grasping what had just happened, they finally got a good look at the attacking pokemon. It was that Mankey from earlier. The one that Ron battled in Route 22. The one that appeared in Viridian Forest. Ron even noticed the exact same scar across the Mankey's right eye as well as Ron's hat on top of his furry head. Ron was simultaneously scared and annoyed at the Mankey's persistence. While Lindsay was also incredibly worried, she did notice a slight change in Mankey's appearance after he finished beating up the creepy man. Mankey appeared less hostile and rambunctious. He appeared almost calm at this moment.

In contrast, Ron did not notice a change in Mankey's personality and was fully committed to dashing the hell out of Pewter City. But the Mankey put his arm out towards Ron and released a screech to get Ron's attention. Ron briefly paused, slightly curious at what this Mankey was going to do. The Mankey took off Ron's hat from his head and, grasping it in both hands, presented it to Ron.

Ron paused as he stared down at the wild Pokemon holding the hat in front of him. Was this pokemon trying to mock him? Was this just a trick to lower his guard? Considering the trouble this Mankey had caused him, Ron was thinking the worst of this situation. In spite of this, he decided to slowly extend his hand and snatch the cap away from Mankey. As soon as he got his hat back, Ron placed it back on his head. Ron couldn't help smiling upon getting his hat back.

"Umm, thanks," Ron bluntly stated as he tried walking with Lindsay away from the Mankey. However, the Mankey released a screech that stopped the two in their tracks. Mankey moved his arms to his sides and stood completely straight as he bowed before Ron.

Ron and Lindsay were confused by the wild Mankey's behavior. Particularly Ron. He had first-hand experience to how wild and dangerous this Mankey was. He didn't understand why Mankey was acting like this. Lindsay was just as confused but seemed to have a better grasp of the situation. Lindsay had noticed something off about this Mankey and believed she knew what this Mankey wanted. "I think the Mankey wants you to catch him."

"Is that true?" Ron asked the Mankey in disbelief. Mankey titled his head up slightly, staring intensely at Ron before that scowl turned into a smile (despite not having a mouth) and a nod.

Mankey had been thinking long and hard about this decision. After his trainer released him, Mankey had spent his time walking across various fields battling unsuspecting trainers to get stronger. However, he didn't allow itself to get captured at any moment. No matter what. He'd been waiting to find a trainer that could really challenge the fighting-type pokemon. The battle with Ron on Route 22 was the closest any trainer had come to defeating Mankey. That battle made him determined to seek out Ron for a rematch. Mankey wanted to work with someone that could make him stronger. But when he encountered Ron in Viridian Forest, he was reminded of the abuse that he faced from his previous trainer. He realized that, more than wanting to become stronger, Mankey wanted a trainer that would genuinely care for him like Ron seemed to care for his Pokemon. Mankey wanted to be a part of Ron's team... but he wasn't going to make it easy for him.

Ron took out an empty Pokeball from his bag when he noticed Mankey making an intense fighting stance. Ron knew what Mankey wanted from that action. "So, you want me to capture you... but you want to have a battle first."

Mankey stared intently at Ron before nodding. Ron was hesitant to battle Mankey considering how badly he performed in the last match. Then, Ron realized that his pokemon had gotten stronger since then. He also remembered that his pokemon were weak from constantly battling last time. This time they were freshly healed from the Pokemon Center. Ron felt a ray of confidence as he took out one of his Pokeballs and prepared for battle. "Very well then."

Both Mankey and Ron exchanged a cocky smirk while Lindsay chuckled to herself. It was like these two were made for each other.

" **Go Charmander!** " Ron said as the fire lizard was released from his pokeball. Charmander let out a cheery roar before realizing who his opponent was. Mankey's menacing glare immediately intimidated the fire starter. Charmander ran towards his trainer and grabbed onto his leg while looking visibly shaken. Charmander wasn't ready to have a rematch with Mankey especially after such a humiliating loss against Onix.

"Don't worry, Charmander. I know you've got what it takes to take on this Mankey," Ron proudly asserted. While Charmander was still nervous about fighting Mankey again, Ron's confidence helped bring back Charmander's fighting spirit. If his trainer believed he had what it takes, then Charmander would prove him right. Charmander got into a fighting stance as he released flames from his mouth.

Mankey in response released hot air through his pig snout. Although, Mankey was interested in getting caught by Ron. He wasn't going to go easy on Ron's pokemon. Mankey wanted to make sure that Ron was a good trainer and battler before joining his team.

The two battling pokemon heavily stared at each other for a few seconds. Both wanting to see who would make the first move. Then, Mankey started dashing towards Charmander. As soon as Mankey started running, Ron gave his first command. " **Charmander, use Growl!** "

Charmander released a loud roar that successfully managed to intimidate the running Mankey. However, that didn't stop Mankey from getting close enough to Charmander to start scratching him repeatedly. **Wild Mankey used Fury Swipes!** While the rapid array of scratches did hurt Charmander, Mankey's attack was not nearly as effective because Charmander's Growl cut the wild Mankey's attack.

"Nice strategy, Ron," Lindsay commended Ron before she noticed Ron staring intently at his Pokedex. Lindsay was surprised that Ron was using the Pokedex right now. He rarely ever used that red brick. It really seemed that Ron was willing to do anything to win this battle. Even _do research_.

Ron was checking information on his Charmander, looking for any effective moves the fire-tailed lizard had learned. Not just offensive moves that did damage but moves like Growl that indirectly affected a pokemon's behavior. Ron would have never thought of using a move like Growl before this battle. But this was different. Ron knew he needed to change his tactics to become a better battler. That included things like taking advantage of Mankey's attack to perform a close-ranged attack of his own. " **Charmander, use Metal Claw!** "

Charmander's right hand glowed white as large metallic claws sheathed out from his fingers and slashed across the wild Mankey's mid-section. The force of the attack was so strong that the Mankey was pushed back a few feet. Mankey laid on the ground with his left arm clutched around his stomach as the white furry pokemon squirmed around in pain.

Ron was jumping for joy (not for Nurse Joy) because of Charmander's attack. Charmander similarly stood proudly with the utmost confidence. It seemed like the tables had turned. It was now Charmander that was going to take down Mankey.

"Great work, Charmander. It looks like that was a critical hit," Ron cheerfully exclaimed.

Lindsay was initially cheerful about Charmander's accomplishment as well. But upon hearing Ron's statement, Lindsay looked back at the pain-riddled Mankey with a face of concern. She noticed Mankey's muscles tensing up and Mankey himself breathing more heavily.

"Wait a minute," Lindsay muttered to herself as she took out her pokedex and looked up Mankey's information. After staring at it for a couple of seconds, Lindsay's eyes widened up as she looked towards Ron and shouted. "RON! Mankey's activating his ability, Anger Point!"

Ron wasn't too concerned about Lindsay's sudden screaming. He knew a bit about pokemon abilities but didn't really understand any specific ones. It looked like Ron was winning this battle and no ability would change that. "What are you talking about, Lindsay?" Ron said nonchalantly.

"Anger Point is an ability that maxes a pokemon's attack after they take a critical hit!" Lindsay exclaimed.

After hearing that, Ron turned his head and stared at the wild Mankey. Charmander looked back at Mankey with shock and awe. Mankey was not only standing with an intimidating stare. But looking more stronger _and angrier_ than ever. His muscles were rapidly tensing as Mankey's entire body was violently jumping around like an angry monkey. Both Ron and Charmander stopped acting so smug and went back to fearing the crazed wild Mankey. Mankey once again made a mad dash towards Charmander, looking more wild and angry as he came closer to the incredibly worried fire starter.

Ron knew that he needed to act fast to prevent Charmander from getting creamed. He needed some way to distract Mankey and defend his Charmander. He searched quickly through his pokedex to see Charmander's available moves until he found one that might be useful. " **Use Smokescreen!** "

Charmander escaped from his fearful daze as he released black smoke from his mouth that eventually covered the entire area. The smoke engulfed the entire city block in pitch black darkness, blinding the battling pokemon, Ron, Lindsay, and anyone else that just happened to be passing by. "You might have overdone it with the Smokescreen," Ron shouted out before getting a lungful of smoke and coughing profusely.

Charmander realized that he surrounded himself in complete darkness and couldn't even see what was right in front of him. Both Ron and Lindsay shouted out cries to try to get Charmander's attention. But the fire-type pokemon was more focused on finding Mankey's location. Charmander slowly walked around the area, trying to not make too much noise with his steps. He listened for sounds that could indicate Mankey's current location. Any time Charmander heard a noise, Charmander would release an Ember attack in that direction but it never seemed to hit the wild pokemon. It was almost like the Mankey was taunting him as Charmander could occasionally hear Mankey snickering. Charmander was hoping that the Smokescreen would give him an advantage but it seemed to be doing the exact opposite.

While Mankey couldn't use his eyes, Mankey had trained himself to use his other senses more effectively in these kinds of situations. He spent weeks going into caves and battling Zubats and Geodudes in complete darkness. Thus, he had an easier time navigating through the thick smoke but it was nevertheless still difficult. Mankey made sure his movements were swift and silent. Only making noise when he wanted Charmander to hear him. He could see the Embers that were directed towards him and quickly got out of the way before he could get hit. Mankey was impressed by how quickly Charmander was shooting those Ember attacks and by how accurate those shots were to his location. If Mankey wasn't so quick at dodging, he would have surely taken significant damage from those long-range fire attacks. However, those attacks did help Mankey determine Charmander's location. Once he found the approximate area of his fire-type opponent, Mankey went for the offensive.

Charmander could feel a presence coming towards him. But before he could attack, Charmander fell to the ground. He felt a long furry leg swiftly kicking both of his legs, effectively tripping him. **Mankey used Low Kick!** As he was lying down on the ground in pain, Charmander could see the faint silhouette of a furry figure. He saw the figure raised his right hand, extended out into a chopping position, as it was about to come down on Charmander's body. Charmander released bursts of fire from his mouth directed at the face of the attacking Mankey. **Charmander used Ember!** Those spurts of ember caught the pig monkey pokemon off guard as his Karate Chop attack was negated. Mankey stumbled back a few feet before landing on his rear.

Soon, the smoke slowly disappeared and everything came into view. Ron and Lindsay could hear the two pokemon fighting but they didn't know what was going on until the smoke fully dissolved. Luckily, both pokemon didn't faint but the two trainers could see they were both extremely exhausted. Both pokemon were covered in bruises and were heavily panting. Ron was about to throw his empty Pokeball when he noticed the Mankey getting off the ground and rushing towards Charmander. Even after the damage inflicted from Charmander's attacks, Mankey was still quick enough to latch onto Charmander's back. Then, Mankey bent down his legs and leaped high into the air. Both Ron and Charmander realized what Mankey was doing.

"Oh crap! He's going to use Seismic Toss!" Ron shouted out as Lindsay watched with her jaw wide-open in shock. Ron remembered that attack destroying Charmander in their last battle and became instantly concerned for Charmander. Charmander was just as scared, not wanting to go through that experience for a second time. Ron checked his Pokedex to see if there was any way that his Charmander could get out of this situation but couldn't find anything that would be effective. Ron was getting angry at himself for letting this happen to Charmander again and not be able to do anything to help him. This battle was going great for them before Mankey activated his ability.

That was when Ron realized... that Charmander has his own ability.

"Charmander, activate your Blaze ability!" Ron screamed louder than he had ever shouted before. At this moment, Charmander was high-up in the air as Mankey clung onto the fire lizard, spinning both of their bodies. Ron hoped Charmander could hear him from such a high distance. Luckily, Charmander did faintly hear Ron's voice. Suddenly, Charmander's frightened expression turned into a more confident, determined one.

Charmander closed his eyes, deeply concentrating and building up energy. It was slightly difficult with Mankey holding his body back plus he only had a few seconds before he hit the ground. Still as he concentrated, Charmander felt a fire within himself. This source of energy that warmed his body and allowed the flames to coarse through him. Upon unlocking this hidden power, Charmander opened his eyes as the flame on his tail grew bigger and bigger. Eventually, the flame grew so big that it looked like Charmander's entire back was on fire. This unexpected flame caused Mankey to let go of Charmander in shock and pain. Now, it seemed like both Charmander and Mankey were going to fall to the ground and take equal damage. But Ron wanted to take full advantage of Charmander's ability to make sure that Mankey stays down.

"Charmander! Turn around and **use Ember!** "

Charmander instantly turned around, facing the falling Mankey as a large flame burst through his mouth. This flame was larger than any fire Charmander previously projected. The fire incinerated the pig monkey as the two pokemon fell to the ground.

Charmander crouched down and landed perfectly on his two feet. Mankey smashed into the ground, covered in char. Mankey was drastically weakened but did not completely knocked out. Ron knew that this was his chance. He took out an empty pokeball and threw it at Mankey. A red light absorbed the wild Mankey into the pokeball. The pokeball started shaking a few times. Ron, Lindsay, and Charmander watched the pokeball move in anticipation. Finally, the pokeball stood still and dinged. **MANKEY was caught!**

Ron slowly walked over to the pokeball. As Ron bent over to pick up the pokeball, a smile slowly grew on his face. Ron held his pokeball up high while shouting in excitement. "I caught a Mankey!"

Ron in this fit of ecstasy ran towards his Charmander as the fire starter leaped into his arms. The trainer and his pokemon held each other in a warm embrace. Ron didn't even mind that Charmander's flame tail was slightly singeing his clothes. Lindsay looked at the two hugging each other with a huge smile on her face.

"Congratulations on that catch, Ron. That was an incredible battle," Lindsay said earnestly. Both Ron and Charmander chuckled awkwardly knowing how close of a match it was. "So, you still wanna leave Pewter City?"

Ron thought hard about that question as he put Charmander back into his pokeball. Then, a confident face grew on Ron's face as he took the red hat on his head and turned it around. Ron thought this action looked cool while Lindsay stared at him weirdly for wearing his hat backwards. Ron wasn't too fazed as he got in a bold stance, putting his left leg on a bench and pointing a finger to the sky.

"Not anymore. I'm going back to the Pewter City Gym and getting myself a Boulder Badge!" Ron shouted to the skies.

* * *

Sitting solemnly on his stone throne, Brock stared at the gym entrance in complete silence. The Pewter City Gym Leader was honestly glad he got to have _two_ gym battles today. Most days nobody would show up and Brock would just sit in his chair, trying to keep his stern demeanor when he was more bored than anything. They were good battles too. Not just the typical rookie trainer that captures low-leveled pokemon and expects to walk away with the badge or the expert trainer with over-leveled pokemon that were strong against rock-types. One of them was even kind of cute. What Brock wouldn't give to see those trainers again.

In that very moment, the entrance doors slid open as two trainers walked into the door. It was Ron and Lindsay. Ron stood straight with a determined look on his face while Lindsay appeared composed and supportive. Upon seeing the two trainers, Brock immediately got out of his chair and dashed over to the front of the gym. His attention was specifically directed at Lindsay. As he got close to the trainers, Brock cupped his two hands together over Lindsay's.

"Oh Lindsay, you are the Solar Beam that brightens up my day. I hope that you have returned to me because you have accepted my offer to go on a date. Imagine the two of us taking a lovely picnic inside the caverns of Mt. Moon. Wouldn't that be _so romantic_." Brock spoke in a sensual and seductive voice as he attempted to swoon Lindsay.

Ron and Lindsay stared at Brock in awkward silence. Lindsay chuckled a bit to relieve the tension in the room. Considering how stoic and dickish Brock was when Ron last saw him, it was certainly surprising for Ron to see Brock act like such a womanizer. Well, maybe not too surprising. Brock seemed like a huge meathead.

"Uh, actually I came here to support my friend, Ron, who is interested in having a rematch with you," Lindsay replied.

"Oh," Brock murmured as he looked down to the floor in disappointment. Then, he looked up and noticed Ron's determined face. Brock's face shifted back into his usual stone-faced expression. "Well then madam, you can take a seat on those bleachers to the sides of the arena." Brock pointed to one of the two bleachers as Lindsay walked over and sat down on the front row.

Brock turned his head watching her sit down on the bleachers before turning his head back and staring at Ron with a stoic expression. Ron thought he saw Brock give a slight smile before saying, "So are you ready for a rematch? Especially one so soon."

"Absolutely! I just might have a little surprise waiting for you," Ron proclaimed as he motioned his hands over his recently-used pokeball on his belt.

Ron looked down at his belt with a large grin on his face. But that expression shifted to a slight surprise when Ron looked up and saw that Brock was already on the other side of the battlefield. Ron stood completely dumbfounded for a few seconds before returning to a battle-ready stance.

"Same rules as before. Any number of your pokemon versus two of mine. Are you ready?" Brock asked as Ron nodded in response. "Very well then. **Geodude, come on out!** "

Brock released the rock pokemon who cracked a smirk upon seeing Ron's goofy face again. Brock waited in silence as he watched Ron who stood completely still. Ron slowly moved his hand to his belt bucket and grabbed one of his pokeballs. Ron held his arm out with his hand fully gripping his freshly-used ball.

 _Brock won't know what hit him_ , Ron thought to himself before throwing his pokeball. " **Mankey, I choose you!** "

Upon being released from his ball, Mankey stood still and looked carefully at his surroundings. The rocky terrain and dusty fields were very familiar to Mankey. Both Brock and Geodude were slightly surprised upon seeing Ron's new pokemon with both of them raising a singular eyebrow. Well, Geodude doesn't really have eyebrows. He just slightly opened one of his eyes more so than the other. Anyhow, the two stared at Mankey completely curious to see whether this new pokemon would be much of a challenge. Mankey certainly had the type advantage but it was going to take more than that to take down Brock's iron-strong defense.

Mankey was still observing his surroundings before his gaze was fixed on Brock. When he looked at the young gym leader, Mankey's eyes opened wide and appeared bloodshot. Mankey saw his brown spiky hair, tan skin, and squinty eyes and immediately became enraged. Before Ron could even order an attack, Mankey brushed past Geodude and ran towards Brock. Brock immediately screamed upon seeing the angered Mankey rush towards him. Then, in a mad array of punches and kicks, Mankey was beating Brock senseless. Brock felt a great deal of pain from Mankey's quick successive blows.

Upon seeing Mankey's sudden attack on the Gym Leader, Ron stopping the aggressive Mankey. "Come on, Mankey! Stop beating up the Gym Leader!" Despite this comment, there was a part of Ron that took some pleasure in seeing Brock in so much pain. Brock was kind of a dick.

Geodude was at first confused when Mankey rushed past him. But when he turned around and saw Mankey beating his trainer, Geodude couldn't help but laugh at Brock's expense. Mankey saw Geodude chuckling and thought that Geodude was mocking the pig monkey pokemon. Thus, Mankey leaped off Brock's bruised body and launched a kick directly across Geodude's laughing rock face.

"OK, Mankey, now use-", Ron said before Mankey unleashed a barrage of kicks and chops at the defenseless Geodude. Ron was glad that Mankey was battling the Geodude but Mankey wasn't listening to his commands.

Brock was still in an incredible state of pain as he laid on the ground completely dazed and sore. Still he could see that Mankey was making quick work with his Geodude. " **Geodude, g-get out of there and u-use Rock Throw!** "

Despite the damage he was taking from Mankey's barrage of attacks, Geodude still had enough energy to quickly evade from the out of control Mankey. Before Mankey could return to his rock pokemon beatdown, Geodude pulled his arms behind his body and formed a large rock in his hands. He then quickly threw it in Mankey's direction, hitting the fighting-type pokemon head on. Mankey was pushed to the ground as a result. But while that attack did damage, Mankey wouldn't let himself be knocked out so easily.

"Mankey, now go for a-", Ron said but Mankey wasn't giving Ron much mind. Mankey sprang back up on his two feet before Ron could give Mankey an order. Mankey quickly got close to Geodude and started scratching Geodude's rough body repeatedly with his Fury Swipes. Geodude tried to break away for a counterattack. However, the rock-type pokemon looked directly into Mankey's fierce Leer and was too intimidated to attack.

Mankey gave Geodude another kick to the face. **Mankey used Low Kick!** Then, before Geodude could react, Mankey held his hand out and spring forward, giving the rock pokemon a hand chop to the top of Geodude's dome. **Mankey used Karate Chop!** These attacks proved too much for the overwhelmed rock pokemon as he collapsed to the floor. **Brock's Geodude fainted!**

Lindsay watched the following events unfold in front of her. She was surprised by Mankey's out-of-control behavior. Wild pokemon were typically more obedient upon being captured. Mankey was a clear exception. But Lindsay didn't think that Mankey was intentionally ignoring Ron's commands. She could see this Mankey was a stubborn fighter determined to do whatever it takes to win. This behavior reminded Lindsay of Ron. Both Ron and Mankey needed to improve their brash behavior and build a strong connection between Ron and Mankey. Between the trainer and his pokemon.

Ron watched Mankey as the fighting-type pokemon, with his beady eyes closed shut, turned his back on the fallen Geodude. Ron's attention then shifted to Brock as he watched the Pewter City Gym Leader slowly try to stand up from Mankey's beating. Ron noticed the large black-and-blue bruises on Brock's body. He could see the tan-skinned man slightly shaken as he gripped onto his large stone chair to help him stand up. Ron felt a tinge of guilt upon seeing Brock in such a sad state.

"Hey man, I'm sorry-", Ron attempted to apologize before Brock interrupted him as the Gym Leader stood up.

"Don't even think about apologizing. That was the most intense gym battle I've ever experienced," Brock explained. Ron noticed Brock's body tensing up. Brock extended both of his arms fully before crossing them across his chest with both hands clenched into fists. "While you might have easily decimated my Geodude, I still have one more pokemon that will not go down so quickly."

Brock got out of a pokeball from one of the pockets in his cargo pants and threw it on the field while screaming, " **Go Onix!** "

Onix let out of a loud screechy roar upon release as the rock snake's coiled body slowly shifted around like a cobra. The agitated Mankey silently stared at his rocky opponent. The presence of this stone behemoth paralyzed Mankey. But not from an electric attack rather from _fear_. Ron looked at his pokemon's actions in confusion. First, Mankey was fighting anything that moved and now, he wasn't moving a muscle. Ron thought Mankey was trying to concentrate. However, Lindsay knew otherwise as she watched from the bleachers with great concern. Mankey's recent actions during this battle perplexed Lindsay. She tried to rationalize Mankey's violent outburst, disobedience, and now crippling fear at the presence of this Onix. Not even Ron's Charmander was this scared when he had to battle Mankey. What happened to this Mankey that made him act like this?

* * *

The youthful Mankey stood at the end of a large dirt field in the middle of a large forest. Mankey's trainer, a large muscular man, stood completely still at the other end of the field. The strong trainer's body tensed up and his imposing presence intimidated the meek fighting-type. Mankey had difficulty seeing the large man because of how far away he was and how the large trees were casting shadows on the buff trainer.

"You must learn how to fight to be worthy of my company!" The large trainer's voice boomed across the field. " **Go Onix!** "

Mankey watched in shock as his trainer's other pokemon was released. This was no ordinary Onix. This Onix was much larger. His head managed to reach over the trees in the forest. A single rock from his coiled rock snake body was as large as a boulder. Not even a group of pokemon that knew the move Strength could move it. The giant Onix exclaimed a loud gravelly roar that echoed throughout the forest. Mankey's eyes widened in fear upon seeing his giant opponent. Mankey tried to run away from the battle ground. But his trainer wasn't going to let that happen.

"You're not running away this time!" The muscular trainer exclaimed as his giant Onix rushed in front of Mankey. Onix's giant boulders effectively blocked Mankey's exit, effectively trapping the frightened fighting-type. Mankey's body quaked in fear. All Mankey could do now was watch as the giant Onix slowly moved closer and closer towards him. The Onix's massive head was uncomfortably close to Mankey's panicked face as the rock-type gave his scared opponent a cold stare. It was like the giant Onix was deliberately trying to scare Mankey. The two pokemon then stood in an uncomfortable silence for a few seconds before the aggressive trainer finally gave a command.

"Now, attack Onix!" The shouting trainer's command instantly incited the giant Onix to rush towards the scared Mankey for the attack. Mankey once again heard the Onix release an ear-piercing roar as the pig monkey pokemon watched the rock behemoth rush towards him for the attack. All Mankey could do was scream.

* * *

After recalling yet another traumatic memory, Mankey finally came back to his senses as he watched Brock's Onix preparing for an attack. This Onix was not nearly as large as the giant Onix from his past. But it was still just as intimidating. As he was coming back to his senses, Mankey could faintly hear a familiar voice yelling from afar. It was Ron.

"Mankey, you have to listen to me! We have to work together to defeat Brock!" Ron exclaimed as he saw the furry fighting-type turn his head in the direction of his new trainer and nodded. Ron smiled upon seeing this, happy to see his Mankey wanting to cooperate. However, this moment was interrupted when by Brock's shouting.

" **Onix, use Tackle!** " After hearing those words, Onix immediately dashed towards the distracted Mankey and slammed his rock head against Mankey's gut before Mankey could even react. Onix's Tackle pushed the pig monkey to the ground as he reeled in pain.

"Mankey, don't let that dumb Onix keep you down! **Use Karate Chop!** " Ron commanded as Mankey got up on his two feet, ignoring the immense pain coursing through his body. Mankey then leaped into the air with his right hand held up above his head in a chopping position.

" **Now, use Rock Throw!** " While Mankey was still high in the air, Onix quickly summoned a large rock from the battlefield and shot it towards the flying Mankey. The rock directly hit the fighting-type mid-air as Mankey's attack got canceled. Soon, Mankey was plummeting towards the ground. " **Catch that Mankey and put him in a Bind!** "

Onix reached out towards the falling Mankey as Mankey would hit the ground with a tremendous thud. At least, that was what Mankey thought at first. But then, he looked around and realized that he landed on one of the large rocks that makes up Onix's body. Onix made the pig monkey pokemon slide down his rocky body onto the floor. Mankey slid quickly off the rock snake before landing hard on his rear. Then, in a fast motion, Onix wrapped his body around the pain stricken and confused Mankey. As the Onix pressed his body around his wrapped victim, Mankey felt like his body was about to burst from the pressure.

Ron felt bad for Mankey. It was finally listening to his commands and was getting crushed by Onix because of it. Ron knew he had to find some way for Mankey to get out this situation. And quickly too because Ron knew Mankey couldn't resist Onix's attack for much longer. But then Ron noticed that Onix's Bind was leaving Mankey enough space for his arms to escape. And Mankey would take full advantage of that. "Mankey, quickly get your arms out of Onix's Bind!"

Upon hearing that, Mankey got his arms out from Onix's Bind before they could get crushed. As soon as he saw Mankey's action, Ron instantly knew they could turn this around. " **Mankey, use Karate Chop on Onix's body!** "

Mankey extended both of his hands into a chopping position and repeatedly slammed his hands against Onix's body. Onix's Bind meant that the rock snake pokemon couldn't dodge any of the hits that Mankey was inflicting. After a few more chops, Onix couldn't resist the pain and loosened his grip on Mankey. Upon feeling more loose, Mankey leaped out of Onix's Bind and landed perfectly on the sandy battleground. Mankey stood straight in a confident position as Ron and Lindsay cheered at Mankey's clever escape. However, that confidence did not last as Mankey collapsed to the floor in pain. Those attacks from Brock's Onix, particularly that Bind, really did a number on Mankey. The pain was becoming too unbearable to ignore. Mankey didn't even had the strength to lift himself off the ground.

"Come on, Mankey, don't give up yet!" Ron exclaimed but this didn't seem to encourage Mankey get back up.

"It looks like your Mankey is unab-", Brock announced before he saw Mankey struggling to get up. Mankey had one knee held up as he tried pulling the rest of his body off the ground. Finally, upon getting back up, Mankey stood up straight with both of his arms arced by his sides.

"Yeah, Mankey!" Ron shouted in excitement.

Meanwhile, Brock silently watched Mankey getting back up. He stared at the fighting-type with his arms crossed before letting a sigh. "Sorry, kid. This has to be done... **Onix, Rock Tomb!** "

Ron was taken aback upon hearing Brock's command. He remembered how painful it was to watch Charmander get decimated by that attack. He didn't want to relive that experience with Mankey. But it was already too late. Before Ron could warn Mankey to get out of the way, large stone pillars emerged from the ground around the area Mankey was standing. It only took a few seconds before Mankey was trapped within this rocky prison. Mankey tried punching the stone walls to break free but it proved incredibly difficult. Mankey's fists barely dented the large pillars and only succeeded in hurting his own knuckles. Ron could hear Mankey struggling to punch his way out. Then, Ron looked past the Rock Tomb and saw Onix slowly making his way towards the Rock Tomb. Onix appeared sadistic as he took his time in performing the attack.

The pig monkey pokemon could hear slight rumbling from outside which he knew was Onix preparing for his attack. Mankey knew if he wasn't quick enough, this Rock Tomb would be his early grave... or at least make him lose the match. Either way it would be very painful. Ron quickly took out his Pokedex to check on anything about his Mankey that could help him out of this situation. He then found something that just might work.

" **Mankey, use Focus Energy!** " Mankey could barely hear that statement from inside the Rock Tomb but still understand what Ron meant. Thus, Mankey sat on the ground, crossing his legs, and getting into a meditation pose. The rumbling outside the Rock Tomb got louder and louder. It would take a few more seconds before Onix wrapped his body around the rock walls and crushed Mankey like a bug-type. Mankey began to concentrate very hard. The fighting-type pokemon could feel energy flowing through his body. Suddenly, Mankey felt much stronger. He then tried punching one of the rock walls and, to his surprise, managed to make a dent in the stone.

Ron could see the dent that Mankey made even from far away. The young trainer cracked a smile upon seeing it. Focus Energy increased the chance for a pokemon to perform critical hits. Now, Mankey was using those critical hits to help him escape. "That's it, Mankey! Get out of that Rock Tomb using **Karate Chop**!"

Mankey heard Ron's command and thus, slammed his hands against the large rocks. Each time he hit the stone wall, the cracks and dents become larger and larger. More and more light seeped through the cracks, letting in more light in this pitch-black tomb.

Brock giggled to himself as Onix managed to make his way around the rocky structure. The gym leader thought that this battle was already over. Onix was preparing to squeeze the Rock Tomb and crush the pig monkey pokemon inside when suddenly...

BANG! A loud explosion erupted from the side of the Rock Tomb as a huge chunk of it was completely demolished. Out from the large hole, the fighting-type pokemon leaped into the air before clinging to one of the gym walls. Both Brock and Onix were completely caught off guard and paused in complete shock.

Ron was going to take full advantage of Brock's confusion to claim a victory. " **Mankey, hit Onix with a Low Kick!** "

In that instant, Mankey leaped from the gym wall with his leg extended out as he went across the room and gave the confused Onix a kick across the face. Mankey then quickly clinged to the wall on the other side.

" **Now, Karate Chop!** " Mankey bounced from the gym wall to the top of the ceiling as he extended his arm into a chopping position. Before Onix could even react to the last hit, Mankey struck down on Onix's head with a mighty chop before landing on the ground.

" **Finish it off with Seismic Toss!** " It only took a couple of seconds after landing on the ground before Mankey bounced back off the ground, opening his arms to pick up the big rock-type pokemon. Ron, Lindsay, and especially Brock were surprised that Mankey was strong enough to actually pick up the large rock-chained pokemon off the ground. The following events happened so quickly that Brock was too confused to give Onix a proper command. The gym leader simply couldn't process what was going on.

Once Mankey was high up in the air, he began to spin around himself and the Onix in the air faster than he'd ever done before. Onix was feeling nauseous with all the spins Mankey was doing. After a few more seconds of spinning, Mankey finally let go of the Onix and got on top of the falling Onix. Right before Onix could hit the ground, Mankey smashed both of his fists against Onix's body, pushing the Onix and accelerating his fall until...

BAM! Onix slammed onto the battlefield, making a large crater in the arena. The sound of the impact boomed through the gym as a large dust cloud formed from the sandy fields enveloped the area. Ron, Lindsay, and Brock were all coughing and rubbing their eyes from the dust. Eventually, the dust cleared. Ron and Brock's eyes widened up once they saw the results of that impact. Brock's Onix was laying in his crater, looking incredibly weak. Meanwhile, Mankey quickly landed on his own two feet, breathing heavily but still capable of fighting. Onix briefly tried lifting his head up but didn't have enough energy to do so. Onix quickly collapsed in the crater and passed out. **Brock's Onix fainted!**

Brock stared at his fainted pokemon completely stone-faced, taking out his pokeball and returning his Onix. "You defeated me," Brock said stoically.

Ron stood completely silent, catching his breath from the exciting battle that just ensued. He looked completely dumbfounded before a large smile formed upon his face. Ron then began to laugh uproariously out of happiness and relief. "We did it, Mankey! Great job!"

Mankey turned his head to face his new trainer. That battle was one of the most exhilarating battles he had ever experienced. Mankey knew he made a good decision choosing this kid to be his new partner. He gave Ron a thumbs up. Ron returned Mankey to his pokeball as Lindsay came running towards Ron. Once she reached him, Lindsay gave Ron a big hug. Lindsay gave a huge grin while Ron was giggling and smiling awkwardly. Brock looked at this exchange with complete jealousy.

"You did an amazing job, Ron", Lindsay said as she released her grip. Ron's face turned slightly red from the embrace but Lindsay didn't notice. "You really showed some impressive techniques out there. Not bad for your first gym victory."

Ron shook the back of his head while giving a goofy smile at Lindsay's praise. The battle with Brock turned out to be just as difficult as the last one. But he pushed through thanks to Mankey. Ron was looking forward to the future battles he'd have with his brand new pokemon.

"Congratulations on beating me. That was quite a battle I must admit," Brock said as Ron and Lindsay turned their heads to him before he continued.

"I have to apologize for my earlier behavior. My jerkish behavior was meant to inspire you to work harder," Brock explained. Ron and Lindsay were surprised to notice that tears were starting to form in Brock's eyes. "But despite my pokemon having such great defense, it is _I_ who lacks a strong defense. That's why I attack like I do... it's not very effective."

Brock burst into his tears while Ron and Lindsay just stared at him in awkward silence. Brock then shifted back to his stone-faced persona. Ron and Lindsay were confused by Brock's sudden mood swings.

 _This guy is so weird_ , Lindsay thought as she looked over at Ron. He seemed to be thinking the same thing.

"I took you for granite-I mean granted, and so I lost. As proof of your victory, I confer onto you...", Brock stated before going into his pocket and presenting to Ron a small grey octagon badge in his palm. "The official Pokemon League Boulder Badge."

Ron took the badge out of Brock's hand, giving a slight grin in response. Ron really felt like he accomplished something today. Not only did he gain a new strong pokemon for his team but said pokemon helped him win his first gym battle. He even got his hat back. Today truly was a good day.

Lindsay was glad she could see Ron's victory. He just started his Pokemon journey and was now proving himself to be a capable battler. Lindsay still felt a tad wary about Mankey though. It looked like the pig monkey pokemon had a rebellious side that would be difficult to control. He certainly acted differently from most wild pokemon. Considering his higher level and battle prowess, it was almost like Mankey originally belonged to a different trainer.

But as Ron took the Boulder Badge, Brock slightly leaned over to Ron before whispering to him. "So, that girl you're hanging with? Is she your girlfriend?"

Once again, Ron's face turned red. Sure, Ron thought that Lindsay was cute but beyond the occasional teasing, Ron didn't really have a romantic interest in Lindsay.

"No, we're only friends. Besides, I wouldn't say she's my type. I prefer feisty redheads," Ron whispered making sure Lindsay didn't hear the conversation. Lindsay stared at the two but didn't pay much mind to it. She assumed they were just discussing trainer tips or something.

"Oh, that's good to know. By the way, does Lindsay have a boyfriend?" Brock replied still in a whisper. This comment really bugged Ron. Brock still wanted to get with Lindsay, despite her polite rejection. This guy didn't know when to quit. Ron was just as interested in women as Brock was and even he found Brock's womanizing disgusting.

"No, but I don't think you're her type either," Ron whispered back as Brock looked down and sighed in disappointment. Brock seemed to get the point now.

"Hey, Ron, look!" Lindsay shouted from a distance. Ron turned his head and saw Lindsay was already at the front of the Gym, right next to the unenthusiastic Gym Guide who had fallen asleep on the post. Ron walked over to see what's gotten Lindsay so riled up.

Once Ron got there, he could see Lindsay staring directly at the post the Gym Guide was sleeping on. Lindsay looked over at Ron while pointing at the sign. "Look! They already put our names on the signpost."

Ron looked at the post and noticed right below Brock's name was the list of trainers that beat Brock. Last time he checked it, Gary was the last name on the post. But now, two more names were added to it. Ron and Lindsay weren't sure how those names got on the sign so quickly but that didn't really matter to them. Ron understood why Lindsay was excited because her name appeared right below Gary's. And right below her name was…

Upon seeing the most recent name on the trainer post, Ron lowered his head to the ground and let out of a depressed sigh. Lindsay couldn't help chuckling at Ron's saddened state.

The last name was ASSFACE.

After an exciting battle in Pewter City Gym, Ron earned the Boulder Badge thanks to the help of a new companion. But how will the other gyms play out? Will Ron be able to control Mankey's violent tendencies? Will Ron and Lindsay learn the truth of Mankey's past? Will Ron try and ultimately fail to get the name on the sign changed? All these questions and more will be revealed in the next exciting installment.

* * *

A nerdy teen with brown hair stood next to the PokeMart, wearing a goofy grin on his face along with his tacky red sweater vest. Behind his scrawny appearance and gawky attire was a considerable interest in museums, particularly the Pewter City Museum. Whenever a person would walk by, he would always recommend they check out the Pewter City Museum before dragging their body to said location. Despite his scrawny build, this geek was plenty capable of dragging anyone to the front of the Museum. The geeky youngster kept his cheerful demeanor when suddenly, a tall man careened towards the ground.

THUD! A tall man crashed right in front of the museum nerd. The museum nerd walked over the injured man. The geek could see the fallen man wore a completely black attire while his body was painfully contorted with broken limbs. His body left a small crater that cracked the ground around him. The badly-dressed geek looked down at the tall man and gave a large cheeky smile.

"Did you check out the Pewter City Museum?"

The black-suited man glared at the twerb with an unenthused expression before replying.

"Just shut up already."

 **TO BE CONTINUED…**


	6. The Very Angry Caterpie!

**PREVIOUSLY ON "POKEMON LEAFS ON FIRE"...**

Near the quaint seaside bays of Cerulean City, an old man and his wife took a trip to the grocery store to get some fresh fruits and vegetables. It was a particularly nice day to take a stroll through the neighborhood. The sun was shining, the wind was blowing a gentle breeze, and the Pidgeys were chirping sweet songs. The elderly couple had pleasing smiles on their faces as they walked home with their arms full of groceries.

"Lovely weather today, Madeline, don't you agree?" the old man said in a soft, pleasant tone.

"Oh, absolutely, Charles. A nice day to take a stroll. But I can't wait to get home. My feet are killing me," the old wife replied in a gentle demeanor. The couple eventually made their way to the front door of their home.

"I do agree. I could go for a nice nap," Charles expressed as he shuffled through his pockets to get his house keys. He was about to put the key in the socket before he noticed that the door was already opened. "Hmm... that's strange. I don't remember leaving the door open."

"Oh dear...", Madeline said in a worried tone as Charles opened the door.

Upon entering their home, a shocked expression came upon the old couple's faces as they looked at the interior. The living room was a complete mess with chairs and couches flipped over, various items smashed on the floor, and many items just plain missing.

"Wh-What happened here?" Charles exclaimed in shock as his arms fell by his side, accidentally dropping his groceries on the floor.

The couple then heard rustling from behind one of the flipped couches. Charles and Madeline stood still in fear as a large figure stood up from behind the couch carrying a laundry bag over his shoulders. It was a burly man with a bushy beard that took up most of his mouth and chin. He wore black sunglasses and a white cap worn backwards to conceal parts of his face. This was accompanied by a black long sleeve shirt underneath a white T-shirt and brown khaki pants.

The burglar turned his head, quickly noticing the old couple staring at him. Rather than panic upon getting caught in the act, the burglar had a devious grin on his face as he maliciously snickered to himself.

"Looks like this isn't going to be a clean getaway after all. Oh well," the burglar said as he took out of a pokeball from his pocket and threw it.

The old couple could only stare as the burglar's pokemon was released. Then, the couple passed out upon seeing the pokemon. The burglar once again laughed maniacally as he returned his pokemon, leaving the home with a bag full of stolen items.

 **NOW, BACK TO THE SHOW!**

After defeating the Pewter City Gym Leader Brock, Ron and Lindsay beamed with excitement as they journeyed to Route 3. The two trainers plan on taking the route to Cerulean City, the site of their next gym. Ron and Lindsay still had fond memories of Ron's incredible victory against Brock with the help of Ron's brand-new Mankey. The two were also aware of Mankey's erratic and violent behavior during the battle which needed to be dealt with. But for now, our heroes are enjoying their quiet trek through Route 3. That was until...

From behind a large tree, a young kid emerged with a pokeball in his right hand. The youngster had a yellow cap that sat to the side along with a blue T-shirt with a white stripe across it and yellow shorts. The kid walked towards Ron and Lindsay as he extended his right arm out to show his pokeball to the trainers.

"Hi! I like shorts! They're comfy and easy to wear!" the Youngster shouted at Ron and Lindsay.

"That's nice to he-", Ron awkwardly said before getting interrupted.

" **Go Rattata!** " the Youngster exclaimed as he released the Mouse Pokeball from the pokeball in his hand.

"Okay, didn't realize that meant you wanted to battle me," Ron bluntly stated as he took a pokeball out from his belt. "No problem, though. I hope you like losing, ki-"

"Wait, just a minute!" Lindsay exclaimed, catching Ron off guard just as he was about to start the battle.

"What is it, Lindsay?" Ron said.

"I want to battle this youngster," Lindsay said while Ron raised an eyebrow. Lindsay walked in front of Ron, wagging her finger at him. "You've got to battle all the trainers on the previous routes. I want to become stronger just as much as you. I think I deserve to have the spotlight on me from time to time."

Ron crossed his arms and slightly pouted at Lindsay's lecture but Lindsay did have a point. Lindsay hasn't gotten to do many battles since she traveled with him. This only seemed fair.

"He's all yours," Ron said in an elegant tone as he bowed down and extended his hand out in direction of the Youngster. Ron and Lindsay chuckled to themselves while the youngster silently stared with a goofy smile on his face.

" **Go Caterpie!** " Lindsay said throwing a pokeball from her bag.

Upon getting released from the pokeball, Caterpie turned his head to angrily pout at his trainer. Caterpie then spewed up a white sticky substance from his face and shot it directly at Lindsay's face. **Caterpie used String Shot... on Lindsay!** Ron slightly giggled as Lindsay wiped the white stuff off her face. The Youngster just stared at Lindsay with a confused expression.

"Caterpie! You're supposed to be attacking the pokemon, not me!" Lindsay said in an annoyed tone. Caterpie shot another String Shot at Lindsay's face in response. Both Ron and the Youngster were now laughing at Lindsay's predicament. Lindsay wiped the sticky substance off her face before returning Caterpie to his pokeball. Lindsay's face was now blushing red with embarrassment.

"Geesh, you must be a bad trainer if you can't even control a Caterpie," the Youngster said in a mocking tone before laughing again. Even the Youngster's Rattata was now giggling.

Lindsay silently switched out to her Pidgey. " **Pidgey, use Gust** ", Lindsay numbly stated. Pidgey rapidly flapped her wings, creating a little tornado that carried the Rattata away before it slammed into a tree. Rattata immediately passed out from the impact. **Youngster's Rattata fainted!**

"Oh man," the Youngster said in disappointment. His head looking down to the ground from such a devastating loss.

* * *

An hour passed since Lindsay's battle with the Youngster. Ron and Lindsay continue their trek through Route 3. But Lindsay was not feeling as cheerful or enthusiastic as she usually was. Lindsay still felt saddened and embarrassed by her Caterpie's angry behavior. Lindsay had her head down through most of the walk. Instead of gazing at the calm scenery, she was staring down at her feet. Ron noticed Lindsay's downer attitude and decided to confront her about it.

"Hey, Lindsay, why you acting so glum?"

Lindsay stopped walking as she turned her head to Ron. Lindsay's bummed expression quickly turned into a bright smile.

"Oh, it's nothing, Ron," Lindsay replied in a chipper tone. However, Ron could tell that Lindsay was only putting on a facade.

"Come on, Lindsay. I know you've been bummed ever since that Youngster battle," Ron explained. Lindsay's falsely cheerful grin shifted into a slight glare.

"Not true. That battle doesn't bother me at all. So what if Caterpie didn't listen to my orders and seems to hate my guts?" Lindsay said trying to not sound as depressed as she actually was. Ron finally realized what the problem was.

"So you're sad that your Caterpie is disobeying you and not giving you any respect," Ron said.

Lindsay then gave an anguished breath before walking over to a large oak tree and sitting down by its trunk. Ron walked towards Lindsay, leaning slightly on the trunk beside her.

"You know you're not the only one who was looking forward to being a Pokemon trainer. Ever since I was young, I've always wanted to have my own pokemon. Not just for battling but for bonding as well. It's like having a pet but an even stronger connection. I've always wanted to have pokemon that would be friends with me. I didn't really have many friends growing up in Pallet Town, besides you and that fat homeless guy. I usually spent many days feeling alone... not even a family to comfort me. I was hoping, when I finally became a Pokemon trainer, that I would never have to worry about not having awesome, friendly partners to be around..." Tears began to form in Lindsay's eyes as she talked, eventually running down her soft cheeks.

Ron looked over at Lindsay crying and gave a slight smirk before responding. "Lindsay, you don't have to worry about that. I'm sure we can train Caterpie to be a more obedient pokemon. You're not the only one with a pokemon that needs some training," Ron stated as he pointed at Mankey's pokeball on his belt. It was looking at the pokeballs on Ron's belt that gave Lindsay an idea. Lindsay stood up from the tree trunk, standing beside Ron. Ron could tell Lindsay's mood was changing for the better.

"Hey, maybe we should take all of our pokemon out. Caterpie might be a little hostile towards me. But if he builds a friendship with the other pokemon we have, Caterpie could become much friendlier," Lindsay suggested to Ron. Ron gave a grin in response.

"Sounds like a great idea. I've been meaning for my pokemon to get to know one another," Ron said as he took all of the pokeballs from his belt and released them. Lindsay followed suit, getting the pokeballs from her bag before releasing them.

Eventually, all of Ron's and Lindsay's pokemon were out of their pokeballs. Most of whom began hanging out with each other. Bulbasaur and Charmander went into a long chat about past events, having not interacted with each other since they were in Oak's lab. Charmander was discussing all the badass fights he was involved in while jumping around and getting into various fighting poses. Bulbasaur "planted" one of her vines on her forehead while shaking her head at Charmander's arrogance.

Meanwhile, Pidgey, Spearow, and Beedrill were getting into a friendly conversation about their flying capabilities as Pidgey soared into the air to show off her skills. Spearow and Beedrill initially looked up in the sky to gaze at Pidgey's flight until the two pokemon heard a cough. When Spearow and Beedrill gazed forward, their faces were flushed with fear as they saw a familiar face.

It was the Mankey they battled back on Route 22. Spearow and Beedrill were paralyzed from the shock of Mankey's reappearance. Mankey noticed the frightened stares he was receiving. A drop of sweat fell from Mankey's face as the pig monkey pokemon awkwardly scratched the back of his head. Mankey explained to Spearow and Beedrill that he was now one of Ron's pokemon and thus, wanted to serve as an ally to his other pokemon. Mankey extended his hand forward as an act of cooperation. There was an awkward silence between the group before Charmander walked over to explain the situation.

Charmander explained, in detail, the epic battle he had against Mankey in Pewter City and expressed how badass he was for kicking Mankey's butt. Spearow and Beedrill stared at Charmander in confusion while Mankey crossed his arms and gave the fire starter an irritated stare. Charmander noticed the glares he was getting and decided to quickly wrap up the story by explaining that Mankey should now be treated as a buddy. Charmander then moved Mankey's arm back into the handshake position before leaving the group.

There was still tension between the group. Spearow and Beedrill stared at each other to see if the other thought this was a good idea to accept Mankey. Both pokemon realized they didn't have much of a choice and both awkwardly shook Mankey's hand. Mankey gave a slight smile. The fighting pokemon was glad to see Ron's other pokemon accepting him into the group. If reluctantly.

Still Mankey needed to make himself the strongest member of the team. So Mankey dashed over to a nearby tree and began practicing his punches and kicks on its trunk. Both Spearow and Beedrill sweat dropped upon seeing that. Pidgey, then, returned to the ground after her lengthy flight. Pidgey was really angry that Spearow and Beedrill stopped paying attention to her flying and began aggressively chirping at the two. Spearow and Beedrill were quickly spooked by Pidgey's sudden rant and haplessly tried to explain their situation.

Ron and Lindsay watched their pokemon and giggled whenever they got themselves into silly situations. The two trainers thought their pokemon were getting along nicely with one another, despite the petty conflicts they got themselves into. Yep, all of their pokemon were enjoying themselves in this large forest... Well, all except one. That's when Lindsay noticed something...

"Hey, Ron, do you know where Caterpie went?" Lindsay asked as she looked around the general area.

"Don't worry, Lindsay. Caterpie's probably over..." Ron looked around before realizing that Caterpie wasn't there. "Ah crud."

Ron and Lindsay rapidly searched through the bushes and woods of the area they stopped at. However, the two could not find a trace of Lindsay's bug-type pokemon. Ron and Lindsay met back at the oak tree where Ron noticed Lindsay looking particularly disheveled with her body completely covered in grime. It seemed that Lindsay looked through every single branch and root to try and find Caterpie.

Lindsay was heavily panting before she could mutter a word to Ron. "We... have to find... Caterpie."

"We should have our pokemon help us search," Ron suggested. Lindsay nodded at the idea.

Ron and Lindsay brought all of their pokemon together and asked them to help search for Lindsay's Caterpie. After hearing their request, the pokemon immediately split up to search the entire route for Lindsay's Caterpie. Charmander and Bulbasaur searched through the tall grass. Pidgey, Beedrill, and Spearow flew up in the sky to search the top of the trees. The only pokemon that didn't leave yet was Mankey. Mankey stood still for a few seconds in a state of deep focus. Ron and Lindsay stared at Mankey with bewildered expressions. Mankey then walked over to Lindsay and pressed his nose against Lindsay's exposed leg. Mankey began sniffing Lindsay's leg for a few seconds, leaving Lindsay completely paralyzed in anger. Having had enough of this, Lindsay let out a booming scream before punching Mankey on top of his head. Mankey stepped back from Lindsay and rubbed the newly-formed bump atop his head. Mankey gathered enough of Caterpie's scent off of Lindsay to start his search. He then leaped on top of one of the tree branches and disappeared into the forest. Ron's jaw dropped from the following events. Not just from Mankey sniffing Lindsay but from Lindsay getting away with punching Mankey. He eventually got back to his senses.

"I think Mankey just wanted to sniff Caterpie's scent from your body to help search for the little guy," Ron explained.

Lindsay was still angrily fuming from Mankey's nasal assault. But upon hearing Ron's explanation, Lindsay simply crossed her arms and puffed her cheeks. "Didn't have to be such a creep about it."

"Hopefully, we can find Caterpie in time. He's probably very far away by now," Ron replied.

Little did Ron and Lindsay know, Caterpie was much closer than they thought. In fact, Caterpie was hiding atop the tallest branch of the big oak tree right above Ron and Lindsay. Caterpie found it so hilarious to watch the two trainers hopelessly search for him. Caterpie immediately squirmed up the tree as soon as he was released from that infernal pokeball, sneaking off as quietly as possible. Caterpie was so sly with his escape. There was no way a single pokemon could ever find him here.

Suddenly, two large beady eyes came into Caterpie's view and the worm pokemon jumped back a bit in shock. Caterpie could now see it was the full body of a Mankey. Ron's Mankey. Caterpie was surprised at how quickly the furry pokemon was able to find him. Caterpie string shotted Mankey's face to defend himself. But it only took Mankey a matter of seconds to yank the stringy substance off his face. Mankey gave Caterpie a deadlier glare in response. Caterpie screamed to the skies in fright.

* * *

"Good job finding Caterpie, Mankey," Ron cheerfully stated.

Only Mankey and Caterpie were still outside their pokeballs. Mankey held Caterpie by the tail using only two fingers as the bug pokemon wiggled around in the air.

"Thanks, Mankey, I really appreciate your help," Lindsay said bending down to pet the top of Mankey's fuzzy head. Mankey blushed slightly. Lindsay then looked over to Ron. "If you don't mind, I would like to talk to Caterpie alone."

Ron nodded as he returned Mankey to his pokeball, accidentally dropping Caterpie in the process. Ron chuckled as he saw the bitter Caterpie squirming on the floor. Lindsay jabbed her elbow into Ron's chest to get him to stop. Ron walked away from Lindsay with his hands behind his head. Now, left alone in this forest area was Lindsay and her very pissed-off Caterpie...

"Listen, Caterpie, I know we didn't have the greatest first impression-," Lindsay was interrupted by Caterpie spraying Lindsay in the face with a string shot. Lindsay wiped the white stuff off her face before continuing. "BUT THAT DOES NOT EXCUSE YOUR RUDE BEHAVIOR!"

Caterpie snobbily stuck his nose up in the air.

"Honestly, Caterpie. Why are you so angry with me?" Lindsay softly said. Caterpie lashed out at Lindsay in response. Angrily releasing bug sounds from his mouth. Lindsay's eyes widen when Caterpie was done with her rant. "Caterpie, I didn't mean to take you away from your tribe. I didn't realize how close you were to them. It seemed like those Caterpie were nothing but troublemakers."

Once again, Caterpie let out an angry chirp. To be frank, that tribe of Caterpie was not really Caterpie's friends. Nor family. But Caterpie still felt like he belonged there in the Viridian Forest. Where Caterpies and Weedles are considered strong. Not hanging around with some freaky human. Caterpie just needs to make it back to the Forest...

Caterpie started squirming away from Lindsay. Slow enough for Lindsay to notice.

"Okay, I see what you are trying to do. In fact, I'll let you make this important decision all on your own. If you really think that going back to Viridian Forest will make you happy, then I'll let you go. But just know that I _also_ wanted to be your friend and would have treated you well." Lindsay calmly explained to Caterpie.

Caterpie turned his head and looked at Lindsay's saddened face. Caterpie felt a tinge of regret. He could tell that Lindsay's desire for friendship was genuine. However, his pride got the better of him. The worm pokemon would not allow himself to be captured by this _human_ any longer. With that, Caterpie stuck his nose up in the air and continued squirming away from Lindsay. Lindsay lowered her head in shame.

"I understand," Lindsay said in a lifeless tone before walking away from Caterpie.

* * *

Ron and Lindsay were walking along the path of Route 3. Lindsay had her head down, shuffling her feet as she walked. Ron looked at Lindsay with concern over her depressing condition.

"Lindsay, are you okay?" Ron said.

"I'm fine, Ron... I just had to let Caterpie go. He didn't want to be with me anyway," Lindsay said in a numbed tone.

"You know I don't get it. Why did you capture that Caterpie in the first place? I mean he left you to die in Viridian Forest. Didn't seem like the friendly type to me," Ron asked.

Lindsay chuckled to herself. "Yeah, I know. It seems kind of crazy in hindsight. But... I don't know... I guess I saw Caterpie as a sort of challenge as a trainer."

"Challenge? You consider _a Caterpie_ a challenge?"

"Well... a challenge to see if I could train an unruly pokemon. I knew that Caterpie wouldn't initially like me as a trainer. But I thought I could train him and eventually he would grow to like me," Lindsay looked behind her. She was already a few feet from where Caterpie abandoned her. Lindsay slightly hoped that Caterpie would _somehow_ come back to her. "But it's _clear_ that's not the case."

Lindsay searched through her bag and took out Caterpie's now-empty pokeball. She opened it.

"Are you doing what I think you're doing?" Ron said solemnly.

Lindsay pointed at a button that was inside the pokeball. "All I need to do is press this button... and Caterpie will be officially released." Lindsay slowly moved her finger towards the button...

However, Lindsay closed the pokeball before she could press the button. "I'll leave this pokeball as is... just in case Caterpie does come back."

Suddenly, some ruffling could be heard in the tall grass beside them. Both Ron and Lindsay stared at the moving grass to see what it was. Probably a new pokemon to catch in the wild. The two trainers were surprised to see a small pink ball rolling out of the grass. The pink ball then sprouted little arms and legs. Then a cute little face with big adorable eyes. The fluffball let out a cute chirp as it fully formed.

"Awwwww, it's soooooo cute," Lindsay said with a massive grin and both hands on her cheeks. Ron chuckled at seeing Lindsay's mood shift so quickly. Depressed one second, squeeing the next.

"I wonder what this pokemon is?" Ron said taking out his pokedex. "Jigglypuff the Balloon Pokemon... it's got big, round eyes and yadda-yadda. The usual boring Pokedex crap." Ron closed his pokedex while Lindsay went up to the Jigglypuff and pet it on its pink fluffy head. Jigglypuff closed its eyes and purred.

"This pokemon is too cute to leave in the wild. I've gotta catch it!" Lindsay said as she took a fresh pokeball out of her bag. She threw the pokeball at Jigglypuff but something weird happened. As the pokeball tried absorbing Jigglypuff, a red light came out of the pokeball but stopped short of touching Jigglypuff. The red light then went back into the pokeball as the pokeball dropped.

"That's weird. I've never seen that happen before," Lindsay said as she put the pokeball back in her bag.

Jigglypuff took a few steps away from the trainers and began coughing to get their attention. Once the balloon pokemon got their attention, Jigglypuff began to sing a beautiful melody. The sound was absolute bliss to Lindsay and Ron's ears. A sound so soothing that both trainers became very relaxed. To the point of sleep... Soon, Ron and Lindsay's eyes became heavier and their minds went into a daze. Eventually, the two trainers laid down in the grass, fallen into a blissful sleep.

"Nice work, Jigglypuff."

Jigglypuff turned its head and gave a wicked smile. A burglar came up from some bushes, carrying a bag over his shoulders with one hand. The burglar walks over to Jigglypuff, giving the pink pokemon a pat on the head.

"You tricked another group of hapless trainers," said the burglar as Jigglypuff laughed maliciously. "Now, let's steal their shit."

* * *

Caterpie squirmed his worm-like body through this massive forest area. He spent most of his life in a big forest but this area was completely foreign to the bug-type. This slightly worried the worm pokemon but then, he remembered about his tribe. The tribe of Caterpie had his back when he lived in Viridian Forest. Caterpie was certain there were other Caterpies that would just as likely support him. That is when Caterpie decided to let out a loud bug cry. A cry that would attract other Caterpies in the area. The cry did attract attention. Just not the kind that Caterpie wanted

The tall grass surrounding Caterpie started ruffling with a faint hissing sound. Then, slithering out of the grass in front of Caterpie was a purple snake with a single yellow stripe on its neck. The purple snake stuck its forked tongue out before opening its jaws, revealing its sharp fangs. Ekans leaped towards Caterpie. Caterpie dashed off to the side before the Ekans could have its bite.

After that mad dash, Caterpie took a few seconds to catch his breath. Caterpie looked around to make sure that purple snake wasn't following him. Feeling safe, Caterpie decided to go over to a big brown bush and relax on top of it. It turns out that wasn't a brown bush that Caterpie was resting on. Bearing large fangs and a rat tail, the bush turned out to be a brown, mouse-like pokemon.

Feeling the Caterpie on top of it, the Raticate angrily shook its body which startled Caterpie off him. The Raticate bared its teeth and fiercely growled. Caterpie took off while the angry rat pokemon chased after him. Caterpie was so concerned with getting away from the Raticate that he didn't notice himself running off a cliff. Falling only a short distance off the ground, the Caterpie was still greatly bruised by the fall. The Raticate stopped short from running off the cliff before walking back into the wild.

The bruised Caterpie laid on the ground in pain. Contemplating how he got himself into such a mess. This place is definitely not Viridian Forest. It's much more dangerous. Caterpie thought he was on top of the food chain but he could see how small he really was. Without his tribe of bug-types by his side, Caterpie was just a small creature within a massive, fearsome forest.

If only that stupid girl trainer was here, she might have given poor Caterpie a potion to make him feel better. Maybe she could have trained Caterpie to be stronger. To be capable of fighting any lousy Ekans or Raticate that crossed his path. Caterpie never realized how kind and affectionate his trainer really was.

Saddened by this realization, Caterpie decided he needed to do something. So the bruised Caterpie crawled his way back to where he last left Lindsay. Hopefully getting to her before it's too late.

* * *

 **30 Minutes Later...**

After a long and arduous crawl, Caterpie made it back to the site where he last left Lindsay. Caterpie has a particular skill for navigating through forests. Viridian Forest is a huge place for a little Caterpie. You needed to learn where to go to survive.

Caterpie expected Ron and Lindsay to have left Route 3 by now. So Caterpie was surprised to see Ron and Lindsay sleeping upon a big tree. Caterpie was elated to see Lindsay again and was gonna rush to her side when he paused upon noticing a suspicious-looking man walking towards the trainers. The man was carrying a large bag over his shoulders. He dropped the bag and was looking through its contents. He had a disappointed look on his face.

"This sucks. These trainers barely had anything," the greasy-looking man said as a pink puff hopped towards the robber. The pink pokemon puffed her cheeks in anger.

"It's okay, little guy. It ain't your fault. You did your job perfectly. Your special song put these trainers to sleep and we stole their stuff while they're busy having sweet dreams," the burglar said as he pet his Jigglypuff. The Jigglypuff gave an evil smirk while giggling maliciously.

Caterpie was shocked by what he saw. He couldn't believe a person would use a pokemon to commit such cruel deeds. Caterpie was not going to let that stand. But then, he noticed the burglar giving a satisfied smirk.

The burglar started giggling as he stared at Lindsay's sleeping body. "You know what. Maybe this isn't a complete waste." He inched himself towards Lindsay's body. However, he stopped when he heard a loud roar.

"What was that?", the Burglar exclaimed as he turned his head over to the noise. He was slightly surprised when he saw the noise coming from an angry-looking Caterpie. The burglar laughed at the Caterpie's attempts of intimidation. Jigglypuff laughed with him.

"Looks like we got ourselves a very angry Caterpie. Whatever shall we do," the Burglar said sarcastically. However, the Burglar's cockiness faded when a spray of white substance spewed all over the Burglar's body. Covering him completely in string shot. The Burglar tried ripping the substance off his body with little success.

"So you want to be a little pest, eh. **JIGGLYPUFF, USE SING!** " The burglar commanded. Jigglypuff opened its mouth. But just as it was about to sing, Jigglypuff had her mouth plugged up by String Shot. Jigglypuff tried removing the String Shot but Caterpie tackled Jigglypuff before he could do so. **Caterpie used Tackle!** Caterpie continued tackling Jigglypuff without letting him make a move. **Burglar's Jigglypuff fainted!** At this point, the Burglar was getting very angry.

"What do you think you're doing, you stupid bu-", Burglar was interrupted by Caterpie covering his mouth with String Shot. Caterpie walked towards the Burglar who was now stuck to the floor, covered in String Shot, unable to speak. Caterpie gave the Burglar the biggest glare he had ever given to a human. The Burglar became paralyzed in fear. He would have never thought beforehand that he could be intimidated by a Caterpie. He was wrong, definitely wrong. The Burglar tried all he could to escape or scream for help. But it was no use. The String Shot was too strong. He was simply left to his fate, screaming muffled screams through a stringy filter as Caterpie sprayed more String Shot over his body.

* * *

The Officer Jenny of Pewter City had definitely kept herself busy. This week alone she's had to deal with shoplifters, runaway Pokemon, and complaints of a strange man dragging people to the museum. Now, she had to deal with this Bandit who's been striking throughout Kanto. She had to announce to the slightly panicked citizens of Pewter City that everything was under control. While warning them to keep their doors locked and their children safe. Truth be told Jenny didn't really have the situation under control. Neither she nor her sisters had any new information about the Burglar or his whereabouts. Officer Jenny just slumped into her chair and let out an exhausted sigh. At this point, she's not sure if the Burglar will ever be brought to justice.

That was when she heard someone entering the Police Station. Officer Jenny immediately stood up straight. She wasn't going to look lazy in front of her fellow citizens. She walked over to the noise.

"Hello, citizen, how may I be of-", Jenny stopped herself when she saw who entered the Station. It was a little Caterpie, looking battered and bruised, who was dragging a large cocoon with him. Officer Jenny couldn't believe what she saw. That cocoon looked almost ten times the Caterpie's size yet the Caterpie could still drag it here. It almost looked human-shaped.

"Uh... excuse me," Jenny said trying to get the Caterpie's attention. The Caterpie stopped dragging the cocoon and looked up at Jenny. Caterpie then pointed at the cocoon with his tail.

"Is this for me?" Jenny said as Caterpie nodded. Jenny walked over to the cocoon and ripped off some of its silk. Jenny was shocked when she saw the face of the wanted Burglar under the cocoon. She even checked a nearby Wanted Poster on the wall to confirm it. Yep, it's definitely him.

"Wow, I can't believe you managed to catch him, little guy," Officer Jenny said petting Caterpie's head. Caterpie was tempted to shoot String Shot at the Officer's face but decided to let it slide for now. He actually kind of liked getting petted.

"You don't know how grateful I am for what you've done. We've been looking all over Kanto for this guy," Jenny said to Caterpie who is just _loving_ getting all of this praise. That's when Jenny realizes something. "Oh, by the way, are you a wild pokemon? Or do you have a trainer?"

Caterpie's ego trip was cut short when he heard that question. This question had been going through Caterpie's head throughout the day. Now was finally the time to answer it?

* * *

Ron and Lindsay had just woken up from Jigglypuff's singing. They both stood up and stretched as they tried to recall what just happened.

"What is going on?" Ron said before letting out a loud yawn.

"I don't know. I just remember we saw this Jigglypuff and-," Lindsay said before she suddenly realized their stuff was missing. "Hey, where's our stuff? Our bags? Our clothes?"

"OUR POKEMON!" Ron said as he felt his belt empty of pokeballs.

The two trainers were frantically searching the area for their stuff when they suddenly saw a blue-haired officer approaching them.

"Hello, trainers, is there a problem?"

"Officer Jenny! Thank goodness, you're here. Our st-wait, what are you doing here?" Lindsay asked confused.

"Oh, by chance, are you looking for these?" Officer Jenny said as they held two backpacks in her hands, both clearly Ron's and Lindsay's. Ron and Lindsay were overjoyed at getting their backpacks back. But then, Ron looked at Jenny clearly bemused.

"Wait, Officer Jenny, did you steal our backpacks", Ron said before Jenny punched Ron's head for his idiocy.

"I can't believe you asked such a stupid question. Of course, I didn't steal it," Jenny said through gritted teeth. Ron proceeded to rub the sore bump on his head.

"Then, what happened?" Lindsay asked.

"Well, your stuff had been stolen by a Burglar who's been causing trouble throughout all of Kanto. We've been trying to catch him for weeks. Luckily, we've finally caught him after all this time."

"Thank goodness," Lindsay said clearly relieved.

"Yeah, awesome job, Officer Jenny," Ron said.

"Thanks, you two. But I couldn't have done this alone. In fact, it was this little guy who did all of the work." Officer Jenny said as she turned her head. Ron and Lindsay looked over and Lindsay was surprised to see a Caterpie inching towards her.

Lindsay saw the Caterpie was bruised and injured. She wanted to console the bug-type but remembered that he wanted nothing to do with her. Upon remembering that, she put her head down in shame.

"Ma'am, is this your Caterpie?" Officer Jenny asked.

"What?" Lindsay said, surprised by the question. She looked up to see a smiling Jenny.

"Because this is certainly one of the strongest Caterpie I've ever seen. He managed to apprehend the Burglar and his Jigglypuff and drag them from Route 3 to Pewter City. After that, all he wanted to do was get back to his trainer. He didn't even want to go to the Pokemon Center."

"Wait, really?" Lindsay said in disbelief.

"Yeah, I guess this Caterpie really likes you," Jenny said.

Lindsay couldn't believe it. Did Caterpie really do this cause he cared for her? Before she knew it, she could feel her Caterpie affectionately rubbing his head on her legs. Giving a slight purring sound as he did. Lindsay was overjoyed to the point of tears as she immediately embraced Caterpie into her arms.

"I'm so happy you came back, Caterpie," Lindsay said. Caterpie was just as happy to be with Lindsay. He never did appreciate having such a kind and compassionate trainer. But that would change today. From now on, he was going to show Lindsay how strong he could be. And that's when it happened-

Caterpie started glowing. Lindsay was surprised as she could feel Caterpie's body changing within her arms. "Caterpie...?"

But he was a Caterpie no longer. Caterpie had formed a hard green shell around his body with eyes on each side and a noticeable triangular protrusion on its back. **CATERPIE evolved into METAPOD!**

"Caterpie, is this really you?" Lindsay asked her Metapod in a soft tone.

Metapod immediately shot String Shot in Lindsay's face. This time, it was done affectionately instead of maliciously. There was a moment of awkward silence from everyone. That was broken, however, by Lindsay letting out a good-natured laugh. Ron, Officer Jenny, and even Metapod joined in the laughter as well.

"I guess some things never change," Lindsay said with a smirk on her face. However, she was happy that Metapod did change. Both physically and emotionally for the better.

 _Maybe my desire for friendship got through to him after all_ , Lindsay reflected. But it didn't really matter to her. In any case, she was just lucky to have such an awesome pokemon... and a good friend.

A new bond is formed between former enemies. Both will gain a lot from each other. Caterpie has a kind trainer who will help him become stronger. While Lindsay has a newly-evolved pokemon to call her own. Sure to become a fearsome threat to all who challenge her. What more exciting events will unfold for our two trainers as they make their way to Cerulean City? You'll just have to see the next installment to find out.

* * *

Deep within the caverns of Mt. Moon, mysterious men and women clad in black clothing were aggressively smashing the stone walls and rocks around the area with pickaxes and sledgehammers. Among the loud noises of shattering rock and clanging metal, a single Grunt among them found something interesting after picking through the stone walls. A piece of rock with a slight shell protruding from it. After closely examining it, the Grunt immediately rushed over to his superior. A man similarly dressed in black but wearing white gloves and boots. He laid down on a chair leaning against a stone wall, appearing to be deep in rest. The black hat he wore covered his eyes and some of his green pointy hair.

"Excuse me, Admin sir," the Grunt said seemingly waking the man from his rest.

The Admin gritted his teeth and glared at the Grunt, clearly pissed. He stood up from his chair and pushed the Grunt to the ground.

"What did I tell you about waking me up?!" Admin shouted at the Grunt.

"But sir, I think I've found a fossil," the shooken-up Grunt said as he showed the Admin the rock he found.

"Hmmm...", the Admin said looking intrigued. He snatched the rock from the Grunt's shaking hand. He closely examined the rock. Instantly recognizing the shell pattern on the stone. "Yep, this is a genuine fossil, alright. Better add it to the pile."

The Admin threw the fossil into a large burlap sack full of other fossils. The Admin let out a malicious laugh as he sat back down into his chair and reclined.

"Soon, this mountain will be cut dry of all of its fossils. And Team Rocket will make a fortune selling this crap to the highest bidders," Admin proclaimed with a devilish grin on his face. He could faintly hear muffled cries from his right ear. Admin walked over to the person making those muffled screams. It was a scrawny man wearing glasses with a white rag shoved into his mouth whilst his body was bound in rope. The man was clearly attempting to shamble his body out of his ropes without much success. The Admin smiled once again before kicking the trapped man in the stomach. As the tied-up man reeled in pain, Admin laughed at his misery. "And I'm making sure no person, trainer or otherwise, can get in our way."

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**


End file.
